An investigation should be launched into the appraisal process of all MRT joint development projects, members of Taipei City Government’s Clean Government Committee said yesterday as they announced the preliminary results of an investigation into the MeHAS City (美河市) and Syntrend Creative Park (三創園區) development projects.
Clean Government Committee member Hsu Chin-huang (徐嶔煌) said that the committee’s investigation had revealed why city-owned land had been undervalued in the appraisal process used to divide profits for the MeHAS City joint development project.
The city is in mediation with the site’s developer, Radium Life Tech Co (日勝生), seeking NT$7.6 billion (US$242 million) in compensation over alleged appraisal fraud.
Photo: Weng Yu-huang, Taipei Times
Hsu said that city land was undervalued because of illegal appraisal rules determined by the Department of Rapid Transportation Systems (DORTS), on whose land the project was constructed.
In estimating future land value, the department simply added bank interest to the appraised value of the land when project construction began, failing to take into account rapidly increasing real-estate prices, he said.
Because similar methodology was widely used by DORTS, a broader investigation into all other DORTS joint development projects should be undertaken, he said.
Committee member Wang Hsiao-yu (王小玉) called for the mediation process to be halted and project land returned to the site’s original owners, adding that she spoke only for herself because the committee’s final recommendations conclusions are still under discussion.
She also said the committee’s investigation had revealed that the main responsibility for the debacle lay with DORTS rather than former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌).
In response to the committee’s findings, Taipei City Councilor Kao Chia-yu (高嘉瑜) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) repeated demands that the city government make public all documents on the division of profits for DORTS joint development projects.
She said the MeHAS case demonstrated that the department could easily abuse its discretion in such cases, adding that making the negotiation process transparent would help the city in its bargaining by subjecting contracting firms to the pressure of public opinion.
DORTS joint development division head Li Cheng-an (李政安) said that while the department’s past actions were legal, it would seek to move the date used for appraisal of land value as close as possible to the completion of construction to ensure profit-sharing more closely reflected market changes, adding that the department had also made its appraisal process more rigorous.
He added that releasing documents relating to ongoing profit-sharing negotiations would be unwise because it could weaken the city’s position if litigation ensued.
Meanwhile, Syntrend Creative Park subcommittee convener Ma Yi-kung (馬以工) said the commission’s probe had found the project to be ridden with procedural problems.
She said the site’s zoning was problematic, at it was registered as a “parking garage” in a technology district and that its “add-on” technology complex was far larger than the “main” parking garage used for official registration.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in