Controlling growth
Chinese urban planners have long known that it is difficult to control all the political, social, and economic factors in urban growth, so in all cities, large and small, the central or local authorities would include more space within the city walls than was immediately necessary. This was the case for both brand new cities built from scratch and also when walled cities were built around preexisting population concentrations.
In Chang'an, several neighborhoods were sparsely populated, indicating that the authorities had left room for unanticipated growth. It was discovered in 1945 when aerial mapping was done of Quanzhou in Fujian that one-fourth of that city was still open space. Liu Shih-chi, a researcher in the Sun Yat-sen Institute for Social Sciences and Philosophy at the Academia Sinica, notes: "Leaving empty space on which crops could be cultivated had two functions: preparation for long-term defense and allowing for additional growth." This suggests an understanding of the concept of "managed growth."
Of course, as in the present, traditional city plans also suffered gaps between theory and practice. By the Sung dynasty, Chinese cities grew less orderly, and began to more closely resemble today's helter-skelter Taipei. Hsia Chu-joe suggests that a city's layout is the product of its times, and there is no eternal good or bad. The differences between orderly Chang'an and the tumultuous Sung era cities reflect different cultures and times.
Thus, for example, traditional cities in north China were supposed to face southward toward the imperial court. This was not only because the emperor was there, but also suited the angle of sunlight and the winds in northern areas, thus making the city a more comfortable place to live. Today people have little regard for placement, because they don't need natural sunlight: everything is electric.
A modern British city planner once said that "perhaps the greatest single work of mankind is Beijing." Beijing and Chang'an are the basis of the Chinese claim to fame in urban planning, because even in the imperial era they understood that it is necessary to consider the practical requirements of the lives of the residents.
Cities are for living
Today's city reflects a commercialized culture of economic development and hedonism. No one argues that material life is unimportant. But in excess, it leads people to overlook how to live in true ease. People no longer consider whether or not they live in comfort, but only whether or not there are economic benefits to be gained. Today's city is for speculation, not for habitation.
Obviously, we are no longer in the Tang dynasty, and it is not possible to enforce a perfect city plan. Problems such as compulsory purchases of land by the state and so on make urban planning a very convoluted process. Still, looking back, many problems could have been prevented in the development process. No wonder one scholar bemoans, "It's too bad the Qing city plan for Taipei was never fully implemented."
No one can say for sure that if Taipei were built on traditional lines it would be a more livable place. If Taipei citizens all moved into Chang'an tomorrow, naturally it would have its problems, too. It's just that the disorder in Taipei makes one long for an alternative.
Hung Wen-hsiung, an associate professor of architecture at Tunghai University, says that in fact there has never been an urban plan suitable for all cities in all times. "Every country is groping toward what modern urban planning and development should be, and there are flaws in all urban plans. Nothing is 100% perfect."
Taipei is still developing its own character, and although it is more chaotic than ever before, it is also dynamic. Hung says he often tells his students that they can see the chaos of Taipei as a reflection of a society in flux, giving hope that there is the opportunity to construct a better future.
Maybe now is the time for Taipei to settle on an urban plan all its own.
[Picture Caption]
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The Taipei of the Japanese occupation era-surrounded on all four sides by mountains and bisected by the Tanshui River-is now a forest of construction. The illustration below is a Japanese era map of Taipei, with those buildings dear to the Japanese specially marked. (photo below courtesy of Lin Han-chang)
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Is a so-called modern city simply one designed for automobiles? The elevated road on the riverside dike has blocked access to the water and ruined the view.
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"Sungchang Poetry Garden" is one of the few parks which merges together with surrounding neighborhoods to create open space with pleasing views. (photo courtesy of commonwealth magazine)
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The lack of parks and greenery in Taipei has caused many scholars to declare that what the city needs more than anything else is open space. But even in jam-packed Taipei, people are still building on new sites.
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The Taipei Municipal Museum of Fine Arts is one of the city's most important cultural venues. (photo by Hsueh Chi-kuang)
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Plan of Tang Dynasty Chang'an
source: Chinese Architecture and Town Planning/map drawn by Lee Su-ling
Unless you start with undeveloped land, it will be hard to bring about large-scale and orderly city planning. The chessboard layout of Tang dynasty Chang'an is very suitable for today's cities, where automobiles play a leading role. Its central Zhuque Boulevard was more than 100 meters wide.
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A forest of skyscrapers and a sea of cars: Where do the children play? (photo by Chiu Sheng-wang)
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(left and right) Today's Taipei has many newcomers from rural areas side-by-side with well-dressed Western-educated office workers; Taipei hopes to become an efficient international city while still retaining its cultural identity.