Chongqing- During the Two Sessions this year, the word "urban renewal" appeared in the Government Work Report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang.
Improving livelihood
According to the relevant person in charge of the Chongqing Housing and Urban-Rural Construction Commission, the city has launched the Action Plan of Chongqing's Urban Renewal since 2018, which involves urban planning, construction, management, transportation, infrastructure, ecology, humanities, public services, and innovation, laying a solid foundation for the urban renewal actions.
In particular, the Action Plan not only requires work to improve the city's appearance and quality, but also practical measures to improve the working and living conditions of residents, including the construction of the mountain city footpath, the renovation of old residential communities, the building of parks, and the improvement of governance in Two Rivers and Four Riversides Core Area.
The Two Rivers and Four Riversides refer to the four riverbanks of the Yangtze River and Jialing River. The core area is enclosed by Chaotianmen-Jiefangbei Area (the intersection area of Yangtze River and Jialing River included), Jiangbeizui Area, and Danzishi-Longmenhao Area.
In more than a year, Chongqing's urban renewal actions have shown results: a large number of scattered land and vacant "deserted slopes" among the local communities turned into community sports and cultural parks; the "star-shaped" type high-speed railway network was initially completed; the intercity railway bus-train was operated in an orderly manner.
A local resident is playing with a child in the renovated Zaozilanya community. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
In conclusion, Chongqing's urban construction and management level have been gradually improved.
"It can be seen that Chongqing's Urban Renewal Plan is similar to the country's Proposed Urban Renewal Plan," said the relevant person in charge of the Chongqing Housing and Urban-Rural Construction Commission.
A time-lapse image was taken of the Yuzhong Peninsula from across the river. (Provided courtesy of Martin S.)
Fund preparation
In the process of in-depth implementation of the Action Plan of Chongqing's Urban Renewal, what will Chongqing do next for its Urban Renewal, according to the requirements of the Government Work Report this year?
"In February 2021, Chongqing incorporated implementing urban renewal actions into China's Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035," said the relevant person in charge of the Chongqing Housing and Urban-Rural Construction Commission.
The 2022 Chongqing government work report makes clear arrangements for the deployment of related work, carrying out urban renewal actions with the Two Rivers and Four Riversides Core Area as the centerpiece.
In 2021, Chongqing launched the construction of 31 urban renewal pilot demonstration projects within the metropolitan area of the main city. Through the demonstration projects, they tried to summarize the experience and push reforms.
"At present, the city's urban renewal pilot demonstration projects amount to 103, with a total investment of about 160 billion yuan (approx. 25.31 billion U.S. dollars)," he said. "Especially, Yuzhong District and Jiulongpo District have been successfully selected as the first batch of 21 national urban renewal pilot cities."
Next, Chongqing will establish a project library for normalized urban renewal and carry out annual plan management.
At the same time, it will broaden the sources of funds strive to increase support for low-interest and long-term credit for urban renewal projects. The city will aim to complete the preparation of the urban renewal fund in 2022.
A picture of Chongqing from the angle of the Jiangbeizui area. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
(Shi Jiaqi, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)