Shanghai Publishes New Plot Ratios For Development
Shanghai mayor Han Zheng, in a move to curb runaway high-rise
development, has published new plot ratios which will
reduce the city's population and building density. The
moves most likely will push up the already high prices
of property in Shanghai.
Under the new regulations, the plot ratio for a high
rise commercial building in central Shanghai, which determines
how much construction can take place in relation to the
land area a development occupies, falls from eight to
four, and for high residential apartments falls from four
to 2.5. Projects under construction will be unaffected
but land already bought but undeveloped will be subject
to the new rules.
The new rules also set strict rules for violation of
the codes. They also require the city to seek the opinions
of current local residents for new urban plans. The rules
are seen as benefiting current developers, who will see
the value of their properties go up, while developers
who have not yet begun their projects will be adversely
affected. In certain instances, new commercial projects
which are marked as landmarks will not be affected.
The move will also curb population density by cutting
the number of tall buildings in Shanghai. Shanghai's current
population is 16 million, with 9.56 million in the central
area, while the greater Shanghai area, including Hangzhou
and Nanjing, has a population of 85 million. This area
is the major industrial and service center of China.
Shanghai's mayor Han Zheng has a background in real estate,
and this move is seen as an opportunity to cut back on
some of the development excesses which happened in earlier
administrations. In some instances, developers paid nominal
fees to residents to tear down their homes and build high-rises,
which led to noisy disputes with the residents, city government
and developers. In most disputes, the city government
sided with the developers. At the time, the Shanghai municipal
government was anxious to build as many high-rises as
possible. Now, the Shanghai skyline is largely dominated
by high-rises.
Recent studies have suggested that excessive building
of high rises have led to buildings sinking in some areas.
Han Zheng is seen as being more modern in his development
policies than his predecessors, and does not share their
obsession for high-rises. Instead, his emphasis is on
developing Shanghai as an efficient, green and environmentally
friendly city. In that light, these new regulations are
seen as his stamp on the city.
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