Property, Preservation and Participation in the Redevelopment of a Chinese Village

The territorial transformation of urbanizing China has involved not only the extensive acquisition of rural land but also the remaking of large numbers of rural communities through urban renewal and redevelopment projects.... [ view full abstract ]

The territorial transformation of urbanizing China has involved not only the extensive acquisition of rural land but also the remaking of large numbers of rural communities through urban renewal and redevelopment projects. Those villages situated in urbanized areas have been particularly caught up in networks of global and local real estate capital. Through the formation of lucrative partnerships between state, village and capital, many formerly rural communities occupying prime land in the city have been transformed into high-end commercial and residential neighbourhoods while reaping significant gains in rental revenues in the process. Redevelopment projects, however, have not been uncontroversial. The ambiguity of property rights relations both between state and village and within village communities has been a hotspot of contention. The redevelopment of historic communities has also generated debates over the participation of the public in determining the preservation of cultural heritage, in contrast to decision-making by the state or the village collective alone.

This paper takes as its case study the redevelopment of a historic village situated in the metropolitan centre of Shenzhen in southern China. One of the oldest surviving villages in urban Shenzhen with historic vernacular architecture, Hubei was scheduled for demolition and reconstruction in 2012 when members of the village collective voted overwhelmingly in favour of redevelopment. The decision was met with vocal opposition from cultural historians, architects and other members of the civil society, who rallied for the wholesale preservation of the village. Drawing on interviews, field observations and primary sources, this paper analyzes the politics of preservation and redevelopment from the perspective of property rights and public participation. It highlights the tension between the logics of claims and entitlements as expressed by different groups of actors, and in doing so shed light on state-society dynamics and the fraught processes of policy-making that seek to