Demolition photos lead to beating
(Site where photographers were beaten at Wangjiamatou street in Huangpu District. Photo by Zha Minjie.)
Yong He, an award-winning Shanghai news photographer was beaten up yesterday when he was taking pictures at a demolition site in downtown Huangpu District.
Two workers from the Tonghai construction company, surnamed Ding and Wang, were detained and fined for beating the photographer and two other Shanghai journalists at the site. (Shanghai Daily)
3 weeks ago
Suzhou Creek cruises set sail
Cruises returned to Suzhou Creek yesterday when two types of vessels went on a pilot run following an opening ceremony. Scheduled services resume today, following a year’s gap while the waterway was dredged. The 19-kilometer trip through downtown takes three hours. (Shanghai Daily)
1 month ago
Full-scale geothermal use planned for city buildings
Shanghai will use shallow geothermal energy to heat and cool buildings covering a total of 4 million square meters by 2015 across the city. By using the geothermal energy in every square kilometer, the city can save 28,000 tons of coal, cutting the emission of 245,000 tons carbon dioxide and 2,000 tons of sulfur dioxide every year. (Shanghai Daily) (Thanks for the tip Alvaro!)
1 month ago
Economic growth slows to 33-month low
(Photo by by Bert van Dijk)
China’s economic growth slowed more than expected in the first quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said this morning. Gross domestic product expanded 8.1 percent from a year earlier to 10.79 trillion yuan (US$1.71 trillion), the slowest pace since the second quarter of 2009. (Shanghai Daily)
1 month ago
North Bund mandates people-friendly zone
Newly erected buildings in the city’s North Bund area will be connected by pedestrian overpasses after the emerging shipping business hub drew a lesson from the pedestrian-unfriendly Lujiazui area.
The North Bund area now requires new office buildings to connect with each other at the third floor to divert pedestrians from the busy ground vehicle traffic. (Shanghai Daily)
Might make it more friendly for the buildings but might also kill the street life and character.
2 months ago
Shanghai lags Beijing on city competitiveness
(Photo by Iker Gil)
Shanghai lagged behind Beijing as the second-most competitive city on the Chinese mainland in a ranking released yesterday.
The report, “Hot Spots: Benchmarking Global City Competitiveness,” released by the Economist Intelligence Unit, put Shanghai in 43rd spot worldwide while Beijing placed 39th. Shenzhen was 52nd in the global ranking, making it the third-most competitive city on the Chinese mainland. (Shanghai Daily)
2 months ago
City to put more limits on skyscraper foundation pits
(Cracks in the ground in the vicinity of the Shanghai Tower, pictured under construction with red scaffolding, have caused widespread concern. File photo/CFP)
Shanghai will restrict the construction of large foundation pits for new building projects in an effort to reduce land subsidence hazards, city construction officials said yesterday.
Projects that involve building deep and large foundation pits inside the Outer Ring Road will be closely restudied by the watchdogs for their potential influence on the underground environment, while new approvals will be restricted.
The decision came after a 10-meter-long road crack emerged in the Lujiazui area, the city’s financial zone, earlier this month. The incident made headlines and stirred concerns among local residents, prompting talk about whether high-rise construction fever should be cooled. (Shanghai Daily) (Thanks Alvaro!)
3 months ago
China's urban population outnumbers rural for first time
(Photo by franklam2010)
The number of people living in China’s cities for the first time exceeded those in the country’s rural areas at the end of 2011, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Tuesday.
The number of urban dwellers increased by 21 million to hit 690.79 million at the end of 2011, accounting for 51.27 percent of the country’s total. Meanwhile, the rural population fell by 14.56 million to 656.56 million. (via Shanghai Daily)
4 months ago
Shanghai exhibition center to be among the world's largest
Shanghai began construction of what will be one of the world’s largest exhibition facilities yesterday.
The China Expo Convention & Exhibition Complex will have 400,000 square meters of indoor space and 100,000 square meters of outdoor areas - double the size of the Shanghai New International Expo Center, currently the city’s largest exhibition facility. (Shanghai Daily)
5 months ago
China wants housing curbs extended
(High rise apartment blocks under Construction in Shanghai via Overseas Property Mall. Photo credits to DCF_pics)
China’s central government has ordered local governments to extend restrictions on the property market, some of which are set to expire within coming months.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has emphasized the need for policy continuity in the property market, and has forbidden local governments from making “directional change,” the Legal Evening News reported yesterday, citing unidentified officials with the ministry.
Last year, 48 cities issued restrictions on the number of homes a person is allowed to purchase to curb speculation and control rising prices. Thirty-six of the cities do not have expiry dates for the policies while 12, including Fuzhou, Xiamen and Haikou, set restrictions to end either by year end or in February. (Shanghai Daily)
6 months ago
