Comments on: Downtown Inc., Chinese Style http://planning-research.com/downtown-inc-chinese-style/ essays on urban studies Mon, 28 Feb 2011 11:39:58 -0600 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Matthias Bauer http://planning-research.com/downtown-inc-chinese-style/comment-page-1/#comment-71 Matthias Bauer Fri, 06 Jul 2007 02:21:00 +0000 http://planning-research.martacrane.com/?p=4#comment-71 The described pattern of development is indeed very typical for many - in fact almost all - cities in China. More often than not the New Town development will start with the construction of a new government compound (as pictured), which almost always follows the same pattern: a monumental main building in the middle flanked by smaller ones to the sides, all completely symmetrical and arranged along a north-south-axis, and with a huge and usually deserted square in front to the south. In the next step a large school would be build to attract well-off residents in search for high-quality education for their offspring. Residential slabs and highrises will start to appear and, maybe, later on a shopping mall or two. The relationship between the old town and the new one is not always clear though. More often than not the New Town seems to suck out the life blood from the old town by luring away the most affluent residents and most successful businesses. And then the city is left with two problems: a run-down, under-developed old town and a boring, lifeless New Town... <br/><br/>Matthias Bauer, Beijing<br/>contact: amritsar@gmx.net The described pattern of development is indeed very typical for many – in fact almost all – cities in China. More often than not the New Town development will start with the construction of a new government compound (as pictured), which almost always follows the same pattern: a monumental main building in the middle flanked by smaller ones to the sides, all completely symmetrical and arranged along a north-south-axis, and with a huge and usually deserted square in front to the south. In the next step a large school would be build to attract well-off residents in search for high-quality education for their offspring. Residential slabs and highrises will start to appear and, maybe, later on a shopping mall or two. The relationship between the old town and the new one is not always clear though. More often than not the New Town seems to suck out the life blood from the old town by luring away the most affluent residents and most successful businesses. And then the city is left with two problems: a run-down, under-developed old town and a boring, lifeless New Town…

Matthias Bauer, Beijing
contact: amritsar@gmx.net

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