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Urbanisation and Urban Development
Sarah Maude
The biggest construction boom ever seen
Urbanisation - the process by which an increasing percentage of a country’`s population comes
to live in towns and cities, through rural-urban migration and natural increase. In China this could
also be due to changing city boundaries.
Areas called cities in China usually include adjacent rural areas within their boundaries, so not all
the population live within what Geographers would consider a city. We will see this in Beijing.
China’s system of urbanisation is“inefficient, uninclusive and unsustainable” Prof. Yang Kaizhong,
Beijing University. (FT 26/3/2014)
Population statistics
In each of the six censuses starting 1953 different criteria have been used to define “urban
population”. In recent census studies migrants who had lived in cities for more than six months
were included.
Percentage of China’s population living in cities - approximately
1949 10%
1978 under 20%
1990 26%
2000 36%
2010 50%
129 cities >1m
110 cities .5m-1m
2014
54%
221m migrants
730m live in urban areas of which 260m of which are urban middle
class, 1/3 are migrants and 270m have no urban hukou.
1.8m extra residents in urban areas every month (World Bank)
2030 70% est
The urban population will grow by 13m per year for the next 18 years. The government is aiming to
have 60% of the population in urban areas by 2020.
History since 1949
1950s Movement to the cities grew as industrialisation occurred.
1958 The hukou system implemented to restrict movement and prevent rural people from
moving to cities (to access jobs and social welfare systems unavailable in the countryside).
1960s -70s government restricted the growth of cities and economic development was seen as
more important than urban planning.
1965-75 Cultural revolution; educated youth sent to the countryside.
1980s Hukou system relaxed to allow workers to move to the cities to provide an industrial labour
force as the focus of development shifted away from rural settlements and TVEs to cities.
1990 and after- massive renewal and redevelopment.
2014 16th March. Government plan for managing urbanisation unveiled. 100m migrants (45%) will
get urban hukou by 2020.
2011-2015 The 12th National Plan (Guideline) calls for more urbanization and supports the
emergence of megacities. Future development will be around 5 cities Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangdong and Chongqing and 6 regional centres,
Shenzhen, Nanjing, Wuhan, Shenyang, Chengdu and Xian. The aim is to direct
growth to metropolitan regions and clusters of large cities and hence rationalisation
of infrastructure and services.
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The National Urban Development Plan calls for large cities, surrounded by smaller
satellites.
Small and medium cities are now growing faster than large cities. There is now a relatively even
pattern of city size distribution (Xuefei Ren).
“The transformation of the urban economy, communities and landscape tells a larger story of
gobalisation”(Xuefei Ren), as evidenced in the “homogenisation" of urban landscapes worldwide.
Tiers of cities
The Chinese talk of this but there are no accepted tier descriptions.
1. The municipalities: Beijing; Shanghai; Tianjin; Chongqing. Sometimes Shenzhen and
Guangzhou are included.
2. Capitals of wealthier provinces or situated along the east coast.
3. Capitals of poorer provinces or populations of over 2m
There are many new cities with populations of 0.5-1.5m
Most populated cities in 2011
Chongqing
28.8 (in municipality)
Shanghai
23
Beijing
19.6
Tianjin
13
Hong Kong
6.8
Wuhan
4.4
Guangzhou
4.1
Shenyang
4
Harbin
2.6
Chengdu
2.3
http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/china
The same website gives different figures elsewhere - see
http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/china_cities.htm
The CBD
Traditionally the function of the city centre was administrative. The concept of the CBD came from
the west in the early 1990s and high-rise building began, including (later) in Shenyang. In
Shanghai (Pudong) and Beijing (in Chaoyang District) these are successful financial and
commercial centres, attracting many foreign companies. Others have not fared so well.
(For details of Beijing’s CBD see Ren Page 90).
Land use planning.
Planning is top down and ordinary people have no real say in decision making. Cities are built for
profit, not people and until recently making them pleasant to live in was not on the agenda of city
officials whose promotion often depended on raising GDP. Urban planning is for enabling
economic growth and building competitiveness - to outdo other cities. Cities have strategic plans
showing their vision but they are mainly uses to legitimatise land acquisition and demolition (Ren).
They tend to concentrate on large scale prestigious projects, including infrastructure and new
iconic buildings like the towers of Pudong and, in Beijing, the Bird’s Nest (stadium) and the
National Centre for Performing Arts (the” egg”) and huge shopping malls.
Planners anticipate growth and plan and build infrastructure (like ring roads) around which the city
is shaped. They have not been keen to co-ordinate infrastructure with other nearby cities - every
city wants competes to attract investment - and wants its own airport.
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In the city, the land belongs to the state and use rights are granted by the city government for up to
70 years for residences or 50 years for commercial uses. But local government can take the land
away “in the interests of the people” (which often means their own interest). Land leasing is a
major source of revenue for local government and officials, many of whole are share holders in real
estate companies and construction firms.
Financing the city
Local governments need money for development and infrastructure as well as many other things,
like social spending. There is insufficient local tax revenue and no property tax (except recently in
Shanghai and Beijing) and subsidies from central government are diminishing. Developers have to
pay fees and an increasing number of projects are public/private partnerships. City governments
borrow from banks and private enterprises (shadow banking) and now vast local government debts
threaten the economic stability of the country. They also lease land, taken from ordinary people
who they displace, usually with inadequate compensation. Leasing is their most significant source
of revenue. Toll roads are also very lucrative.
Social Areas in the city
Towards the city centre affluent and poor areas are close together but they are more segregated in
the suburbs, especially due to the “compound” nature of residential building. There is less poverty,
squalor and informal settlement than in other developing countries but what there is tends to be
hidden.
There are three types of areas of poverty (with high levels of unemployment)
• old inner city where multi occupancy leads to sever overcrowding
• degraded former work unit housing. As these (includingSOEs) change their welfare role, better
off families move to new housing estates leaving behind sink areas with poorly maintained
buildings. Some homes are purchased cheaply by the tenants. See below about Harbin *.
• migrant villages (not all on the edge).
(There are some meagre government subsidies for the poorest people but most local governments
do not apply them. In the northeast there are special subsidies for those hardest hit by SOE
reforms, because of fears of discontent.)
“Urban restructuring has further exacerbated social stratification” (Xuefei).
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The photo on the previous page is of Hongqiao Gardens where I lived in Shanghai until 2013. A
typical middle class gated housing compound with over 25 blocks and green areas. Many of the
apartments appeared unoccupied, probably purchased to get the benefit of price rises in a country
with low interest rates for savings.
Housing estates (xiaoqu) for workers accommodate thousands/tens of thousands and, according
to Xuefei, have one common design feature - “grating”.
*Harbin Case study. In 2011 Xuefei Ren visited a factory work unit housing compound in a
“poverty neighbourhood” of Harbin, degraded and ill maintained due to SOE reforms. Many
residents could not afford to buy a house elsewhere so some bought their homes here at a
discounted rate. In the housing that remains there are a large number of ageing and unemployed
workers and their families. At its peak in the 1960s the factory employed 20,000 workers, by 2011
only 2,000 jobs remained. The factory sold much of its land holding to a private developer who built
high rise commercial apartments and shopping malls. (Ren page 61)
Shopping
The streets of older districts are lined with large and small shops, including supermarkets. Major
shopping streets in the centre are usually pedestrianised (e.g. Wangfujing Street Beijing) and
include international chains like Zara, H&M. Parksons and Muji. This is the age of the Mall, large
and small, in city centres and in the suburbs. Some sell luxury brands and have few customers.
Many are huge and busy. From the outside they are usually ugly concrete blocks. Even the old
markets (including the fake markets) are now in multi-storey buildings, like the Silk Market in
Beijing.
Urban Renewal and Redevelopment
Central city areas were neglected in the 1950s to 70s and since many neighbourhoods have been
demolished, whether they had heritage value or not. In general Chinese people prefer new to old.
Industrial premises were common in central areas but many of these have been moved further out,
particularly if they pollute.
Governments may displace people “for the greater good”, but in fact for commercial gain, for the
city coffers and for the individual officials. New developments may be public buildings like for the
Olympics or the Shanghai Expo (2010) or opulent town halls. Or they may be housing (often
upmarket), offices or shopping malls (very popular). Between 2005 and 2010 16% of 20th century
housing disappeared.
Dispossessed residents are moved to housing estates on the edge of the city, far from their jobs
and family. But many are happy with better quality housing with private kitchens and bathrooms.
Nowadays they usually have to buy their new apartment but are not given sufficient cash to cover
the cost. Some residents delay their moves hoping to increase their compensation if they hold up
the project. The national government now discourages large scale displacement and demolition
because of fears of social instability but local governments have different ideas. However, there
has been less residential redevelopment since the government implemented measures to stop
house price rises.
We used to say - if you wish to use a shop or service do it today because it may be gone next time
you come - even relatively new buildings disappear in favour of a larger one. But enterprises come
and go quickly too.
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Heritage areas
Because so many old buildings have vanished, city governments have adopted preservation
regulations for buildings and areas. These are often ignored as developers try to demolish before
the authorities find out, and fines are lower than expected profits. There are also restrictions on
what can be added to an old building but not always enforced.
Old heritage buildings are often demolished and rebuilt! (Never assume a building is genuinely
old.) To enhance tourism potential, many cities have revamped streets in their old centres
(examples include Xintiandi in Shanghai, Kunming, Chengdu and many more). Some even build
old streets from scratch (in Zhangjiajie, by the UNESCO World Heritage scenic spot, the “ancient”
section of the city was opened last year).
Suburbs and Suburbanisation
Cities sprawl but take a different form to western cities. City governments annex land on edge of
the built up area and control development. There are a variety of land uses, including some fields,
and socio-economic composition is varied. Huge residential towns appear with high density of
population but insufficient employment, infrastructure and services. Some are empty, “ghost
towns”.
Developments include:
Satellite towns. E.g. Tiantongyuan, Beijing.
These are developed by the city government, often in association with private real estate
companies. They usually have a cellular design with residential tower blocks in huge compounds,
which inhibit road transport, especially as car ownership rises. These towns are built to alleviate
population pressure in central areas, to provide affordable housing and to accommodate city
residents displaced by redevelopment. Retail opportunities in some are provided by international
chains like IKEA, Walmart and Carrefour as well as small shops set up by migrant workers. These
towns are often not popular with residents due to lack of infrastructure and links to the city centre.
Empty large houses (called villas in China) and groups of tower blocks (“ghost towns”) are
evidence of failure to attract residents.
Thames Town (Songjiang District, Shanghai), completed in 2006, has a centre designed to look
like an old English town. Last summer (2013) many of the buildings in the centre were still empty
(including the two pubs), as were many of the surrounding villas, purchased as investments, not to
live in. (But occupancy was higher than when the GA group visited in 2007). Built for 10,000
people, 30 km from Shanghai centre, it lacks public transport. It was part of the early C21 “One
city, 9 Towns” project, now abandoned by several of the towns designated.
For more on Thames Town
http://shanghaiist.com/2013/05/13/vice_visits_shanghais_thames_town.php
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Thames Town Centre
University towns.
To get to Songjiang University Town, near to Thames Town, takes an hour by metro from central
Shanghai and then a bus ride. It is typical of such towns which include several huge universities
built on formerly agricultural land on the urban fringe. They are often associated with real estate
development, to attract potential residents.
Changchun - 14 universities (including Jilin University) have been built to the south west of the city
by the High Tech Industrial Development Zone and Automobile Industrial Park. By light rail it is 20
minutes from Changchun main station.
Manufacturing zones
These may be vast and include new factories and those relocated from more central areas. Many
workers live in dormitories provided by the employers.
Art districts
These are increasing in number, Beijing now has over a dozen. Many grew up in old factory
buildings where young artists could find cheap studios but now the state has exerted more control
and so have commercial interests. Rents have increased and the original clientele have moved
out. Some, like 398 Art District in Beijing, are major tourist attractions.
Golf courses and theme parks take up much space. A Disneyland is currently under construction in
Pudong (Shanghai).
Urban villages (Villages in the city)
Unplanned expansions of former urban fringe villages house migrant workers. Farmers are
permitted to develop their residential land, so they do, building small blocks. 3m people live in
“urban villages”around Beijing, in unheated, 15 square metre apartments. Some farmers become
wealthy this way. These places lack infrastructure, and rarely have easy transport connections to
the city centre. Many around Shanghai have been demolished, like Dongxiaokou, shown in
pictures published by the Shanghaiist.
http://shanghaiist.com/2014/07/09/the_life_of_a_going-to-be_demolishe.php
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Land grabs at the edge of cities
If space for development (public or commercial) is not available through negotiation, local
governments can legally acquire it “in the interest of the people”. Farmers may not want to give up
their land and homes and sometimes the compensation offered is way below their value. Local
officials make large amounts of money for their city (and sometimes themselves) by selling land
leases to developers. Not all land takeovers are “land grabs”.
Challenges
“A new grand plan for China’s cities, overseen by the prime minister and published last month
[March 2014] admits to a number of problems, such as worsening pollution, urban sprawl and
congestion as well as growing social tensions. It also points out that China’s urbanisation lags
behind that of other countries at similar levels of development (typically around 60%), and that
there remains quite a lot of room for further urban growth” (Economist 19.4.2014)
Challenges include :
rapid growth of car ownership
financing development and debts
creatingliveable cities
infrastructure development
environment
waste disposal
water supply
hukou reform (very expensive)
city governance
North East China Statistics 2012
Estimates
Urban with rural Registered
urban%
status %
Rural %
Living where
registered
GDP/pers
$ 1000
Heilongjiang
43.1
8.4
48.5
5.7
Jilin
46.3
7.6
46.1
6.9
Liaoning
34.3
15.9
49.8
9
National Average
46.9
17.5
35.6
6.1
Shanghai
10.7
35.5
53.8
13.5
Beijing
13.8
35.8
50.4
13.9
Source: The Economist “Building the Dream” 19/4/2014
References
Xuefei Ren “Urban China” 2013 PolityExcellent source.
“Building the Dream” The Economist 19/4/2014
Sarah Maude July 2014