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Xuhui authorities call time on illegal expat bars
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XUHUI District government is shutting down unlicensed bars on a downtown road that is popular with expatriates, officials said yesterday.
Over 70 bars and restaurants out of about 90 premises along Yongkang Road have been found to be unlicensed or occupying illegal structures.
They will be shut down by the end of October, said Liu Haisheng, the head of Tianping Sub-district’s newly-established Yongkang Road improvement team.
However, about 19 bars and restaurants that have licenses and business certificates can remain open as long as they close before 10pm to avoid disturbing residents living upstairs, he told a press conference yesterday.
The illegal businesses will be turned into boutiques, chain stores or apartments, Liu said.
“Law enforcement officers with the district’s urban management team and police authorities will patrol the road to ensure bars do not move tables onto the street or remain open after 10pm,” Liu said. “The environment of the street will be greatly improved.”
The government launched the crackdown in July in response to complaints from residents about noise and traffic chaos generated by the popular bars along the 550-meter-long road.
Some of the bar owners have structurally altered the four-storey wooden residential buildings, which were built over 70 years ago.
Some bars even took over portions of the road, moving tables outside and operating until late at night.
“It was a total mess, especially on Friday nights,” said an elderly resident surnamed Zhou who lives above the bars. “The bars play loud music, while some drunken foreigners sing and dance, which is a nuisance,” he added.
The residents have also complained of passing cars honking repeatedly, sparking quarrels between drivers and customers.
However, the road’s foreign customers, who enjoy the relaxing environment and cheap drinks, see it differently.
“It’s a pity for foreign tourists that most of the bars will be closed because the place is unique and not expensive,” Simon Louis, an English tourist who often visits the city, told Shanghai Daily.
“I may not come here after the crackdown, but I’m sure similar places will pop up somewhere else,” he said.
The bar strip first gained notoriety when an annoyed resident poured hot water on noisy foreign customers partying below in 2013.
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