Sleepy town gets wake-up call
- Source: Global Times
- [00:58 November 18 2009]
- Comments
New town plan frightens
vast majority of residents
Every evening Feng Ai, 51, likes to take a tranquil stroll with her husband around the town. "I fear it might be very noisy soon," she said.
The sudden change has shocked everybody in Cicheng and despite interviewing dozens of locals, the Global Times could only find one resident willing to speak in favor.
Huang Xianghuan, 53, welcomed the new Hunan company.
"My house is full of damp when it rains because I live in a low house," he said.
"I am looking forward to being relocated by the new company and I hope they will do it quick and give me a large amount of money. "
Then I can buy a new house nearby, outside the town.
Li Yiwei, a teacher at the 100-year-old Ci Lake Middle School north of Cicheng, once visited the new Fenghuang City and found it "severely over-developed".
We normal people dare not criticize government performance. What I can say is I really worry about the fate of those old buildings if the Fenghuang Company invades.
Dai Songyue agreed.
I went twice to Fenghuang and only the noise and neon lights impressed me. I think Fenghuang is among the worst failures of developed ancient towns in China.
I wouldn' t like Cicheng to be like that.
Her neighbors were convinced Fenghuang would demolish their old houses and ruin local business, shopkeeper Bao Ya' er, 53, told the Global Times.
Bao' s home is the only shop open every day next to the main tourist spot: the county government of-fice building,.
"I don' t get many tourists every day," Bao said, "but I still prefer our own local company to handle development."
Lu Zuxing, 67, living in a dozen-household, hundreds-of-years old courtyard, told the Global Times he felt reluctant to leave his house and neighbors also felt helpless if an outside company came to force them to move out.
They came for the money. The government has admitted this.
Ying Weiwei, a Cichengnese working as a greeter at the County Government Office Building, is wor-ried about both her job and the town' s future.
I heard Fenghuang is very good at building new architecture near historic which would destroy the cultural atmosphere of this place.
The current company has a clear awareness of the significance and methods of protecting the old buildings.
