Beijing doubles cash spent on renovations

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-11-21  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

BEIJING is to double its investment in the renovation of its ancient downtown buildings next year with a budget between 1.5 billion yuan (US$220.6 million) and 2 billion yuan.

About 20,000 families in the districts of Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chongwen and Xuanwu will benefit from the project, which will focus on aging homes in dangerous condition, vice mayor Chen Gang said on Wednesday.

Siheyuan, or courtyard homes, are common in Beijing's hutong, or alleyways.

Their residents complain about leaking roofs in summer, fire hazards and dangerous electricity cables. They must also share water taps, electricity and toilets with neighbors, which sometimes leads to quarrels.

"Issues concerning people's living standards should be resolved quickly. We should begin renovations in the early spring," Chen said.

"The goal is that no more shabby and dangerous homes should be found in downtown Beijing within two or three years," he said.

Authorities would ban the involvement of real estate developers in the renovation project to avoid massive demolitions and reconstruction and protect residents' rights, Chen said.

The government would bear the renovation costs for public buildings and half of the costs for private buildings, he added.

Beijing started a huge renovation project in October last year with an investment of 1 billion yuan, the largest of its kind since 1949 when the People's Republic of China was founded. A total of 10,576 families in 1,954 courtyards in 44 hutong have benefited from the project, which has enabled each family to have its own toilet and tap water.

The government said it had taken care to avoid damaging the traditional look of hutong to preserve their historical and cultural significance.

Beijing still has about 2 million square meters of old homes in downtown areas, said Sui Zhenjiang, head of the Municipal Committee of Construction.