Urban Landscaping Beijing

Historic Urban Landscaping in Beijing

Over the past few decades urban conservatism as a means for sustainable urban development has become increasingly critical. This development has been reflected on the international level by UNESCO (2011 “Recommendation on Historic Urban Landscape”) and other organization in order to reiterate its importance. UNESCO defines HUL as “the urban area understood as the result of a historic layering of cultural and natural values and attributes, extending beyond the notion of “historic centre” or “ensemble” to include the broader urban context and its geographical setting’ (UNESCO 2011: Article 8). However, unfortunately this definition only represents a recommendation without real legal authority or ability to implement, as it is subject to local political, economic, social and cultural restraints. Furthermore, it is widely criticised for being too vague, lacking any real instructions as to how such values should be preserved. “Historic Urban Landscaping in Beijing” is a case study that analyses different actors and their roles vis-a-vis urban development and heritage preservation in one specific Beijing neighborhood as a direct response to two proposed projects in 2010 and 2012.

In 1950, after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, the city began to undergo significant urban development, which gave way to two main architectural approaches specifically regarding Beijing. These two approaches were architectural idealism, whose goal was predominantly to preserve the old city, and political pragmatism, whose goal was the transformation of the old city into more industrial and administrative zones. Recently however, these trends have become somewhat reversed, with a growing emphasis on the preservation of the traditional character of the city. Despite this seeming reversal, the actual preservation of cultural heritage within the urban makeup of the city has still been threatened by development. The disappearance of several traditional structures in the last half decade, has raised both local as well as national awareness of the importance of the protection of cultural heritage. In response to this, the Municipality of Beijing created 25 historic preservation districts, however it is seen as preservationists as too little too late. The preservation of the old city in Beijing is still very much at risk. This chapter will discuss a widely controversial project in a Beijing neighborhood, developing the narratives of each actor involved. By doing so, it will shed light on the complexity of urban development on a local as well as governmental level.

In 2010, the neighborhood of Gulou located in Beijing became the host to a new urban development project proposal to alter a historically protected zone. The intent of this proposal was to spend approximately 61 million dollars to renovate 12.5 hectares of this historical zone which was centered around the Bell and Drum Towers, both a physical and cultural marker for the city. The project’s initial goal was to widen streets, and generally improve the quality of life for local residents. However the project faced a lot of criticism as the opposition argued that it would require a significant amount of demolition and destruction of culturally significant properties, as well as massive relocations of residents. As a result, the proposal lost its momentum, until a new but very similar restoration project appeared in 2012. This new project was part of an increasing global issue in a generation of massive development, that dealt with the many complications of finding a balance between preservation and growth in a city. The plan involved even more destruction of households and culturally significant sites such as courtyards, than the previous plan in 2010. The result of this plan was significant in that it deconstructed the common stereotype of such an issue, while exposing the many paradoxes present in much of the opposition's reasoning. This can be seen by examining the individual roles of the actors involved in this process. This includes the government, as it was the instigator of the initiative, the preservationists, as well as locals living in the area of question.

The proposal of the development plan was created by the local government and focused on the renovation of an area that was recognized as having significant potential for revenue production. The government would generate a considerable income through this project by acquiring certain properties at a low price and then selling it at a much higher rate to developers. This would be done by offering

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