AWA: Academic Writing at Auckland

Question One

Gentrification is the process of development that takes place within a given area of an urban environment (Lees, Butler, Bridge, 2012). This can often be identified within suburbs near the city centre, through extensive investments in shops, restaurants, and, homes. Gentrification is a product of city expansion in urban sprawl. Suburbs closest to the city centre become the most idealised, driving the value of property upwards. Eventually, the richest residents of the city are the only people who can afford to live in these suburbs, driving the poorer residents further out from the city centre. Much renovation or development takes place on the physical aspects of a given suburb, subsequently gaining much attraction and appeal. Gentrification has occurred in inner-city Beijing. Beijing is China’s capital city and second largest city, with a population above 20 million (Roxburgh, 2018). The rapidly growing population of Beijing has strained services around the city, and, plans to cap the population at 23 million have been implemented (Roxburgh, 2018). Similar to many other cities around the world, city growth has heightened the demand for central property in Beijing. Centrally located neighbourhoods consisting predominantly of traditional Chinese houses, have gradually become idealised in Beijing (Leaf, 1995). These suburbs have originally housed the poorer residents of the city, but as their locations gained more value, they have gained the attention of wealthier residents. Another reason for the revamped appreciation of traditional Chinese houses is that the past has become prized, in an era of modern high-rise development. A growing desire to preserve historic areas of the city has been seen in Wudaoying Hutong, in which retention of traditional buildings has seen the suburb become somewhat of a tourist destination (Kinder, 2011). Henceforth, the centrally located and historic, suburbs of Beijing have recently experienced an influx of wealthy investors and residents.

Question 2

While gentrification initiates the influx of wealthy residents into a newly idealised suburb, this entails the concurrent outflow of the poorer residents who originally lived in the area. These residents sometimes sell their houses to the newly arriving wealthier residents, but typically tend to be renters, who are evicted from their homes (Lees, Butler, Bridge, 2012). The increasing valuation of such land encourages home owners and land lords in the area to sell their land, subsequently displacing the poorer residents who lived there. Displacement presents a challenging situation for such residents, as they must relocate and reorganise their livelihoods. The most common options for relocation in Beijing are to move to a satellite town or to an informal settlement (Shin, 2012). Satellite towns in Beijing were planned to reduce stress on the city, by relocating significant amounts of industry and the working population (Currier, 2008). Satellite towns produce social, economic, and political exclusion from Beijing, as residents are denied of inner-city services and amenities.  However, the less appealing relocation option is to move into an informal settlement, found in both inner-city and outer-city Beijing (Lead, 1995). Large amounts of Beijing’s population reside in an informal settlement, many of whom are migrants as they are deprived of the right to buy property. As informal settlements are not legally recognised, the government has the ability to destroy such settlements, as they did in preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games (Hooker, 2008). This leaves residents of informal settlements extremely vulnerable and in a state of constant uncertainty. Gentrification generates an unfortunate situation for displaced residents as they are presented with uncertainty and limitation in the challenges of relocation.

Reference List

Lees, L., Butler, T., & Bridge, G. (2012). Mixed Communities: gentrification by stealth? Chicago, IL: The Policy Press.

Roxburgh, H. (2018). China’s radical plan to limit the populations of Beijing and Shanghai. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/mar/19/plan-  big-city-disease-populations-fall-beijing-shanghai

Leaf, M. (1995). Inner city redevelopment in China. In Kirby (Ed.). Cities (volume 12, pp. 149-162). Great Britain: Elsevier.

Kinder, C. (2011). Beijing monastery’s newer neighbours. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://archive.nytimes.com/query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage-

9C0DE6D81531F930A35754C0A9679D8B63.html

Shin, H, B. (2012). Rebuilding residential space. In Wu, Fulong (Ed.) China’s emerging   cities: the making of new urbanism (pp. 163-184). London: Routledge.

Currier, J. (2008). Art and Power in the New China: An Exploration of Beijing’s 798 District and its Implications for Contemporary Urbanism. (Ed.). The Town Planning Review, 79, pp. 237 – 265). Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.

Hooker, J. (2008). Before Guests Arrive, Beijing Hides Some Messes. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/29/sports/olympics/29beijing.html