Shanghai pushes urban regeneration as renovation of villages gathers pace
Shanghai Party secretary Chen Jining says that urban regeneration is an important measure to carve out a new development mode for the city in line with the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.
With still greater achievements expected in urban regeneration, a new chapter will be ushered in in terms of building a city for the people, he told a conference on promoting urban regeneration on Tuesday.
In fact, the achievements in this direction are eminently palpable.
For instance, the urban regeneration effort in the Pudong New Area got a shot in the arm as renovations of some villages in the district kicked off in the New Year.
On January 2, Zhu Zhisong, Pudong Party chief, inspected some urban villages slated for renovation in Heqing Town. He also visited a construction site, where residences are being built for affected villagers in a community in Chuansha Town.
This village renovation project in Laoji Town and Nanshe Community involves a total area of 1,661 mu (111 hectares), more than half of which being collective construction land use, involving five villages: Qingfeng, Qingxing, Hongxing, Yaojin, and Qinyi.
An urban village in Shanghai's Pudong New Area slated for renovation.
They are typical chengzhongcun, or villages in the middle of the city, in that they are surrounded by established residential compounds and in close proximity to production facilities, commercial entities, park, and schools.
With these village houses located in the vicinity of factories and shops, and given the lack of public services and fire accident hazards, all villagers have shown a strong desire for renovation.
The current renovation blueprint, already approved by the Pudong government, would proceed in full view of the policy incentives accruing from Zhangjiang Science City, plus the geographic advantage of the forthcoming East Hub, so as to further catalyze the development of the high-end medical instruments industry, the modern high-tech industry, the headquarters economy, and the nurturing of startups, all in an effort to push for quality urban development.
A construction site, where residences are being built for affected villagers in a community in Pudong's Chuansha Town.
Efforts will also be made to create a "15-minute community life circle" with an improved comprehensive environment that is informed by mutually reinforced interplay between living quarters and manufacturing space.
Significantly, the urban village renovation project of Xiaowan Village in Tangzhen took only 134 days, from obtaining municipal approval to securing the consent of the affected villagers.
By January 1, an astonishing 99.8 percent of the villagers had already signed the agreement, with full effort at securing 100 percent consent.
