My granddaughter has a row of four rooms alone, and this dangerous rural house in Shanghai has become a three story villa
"Previously, I used to use a toilet to go to the bathroom, and it took me half a month to take a shower in the public bathroom, which is unbearable." Two years ago, Wang Zongde, a nearly eighty year old villager from Gelong Village, could not have imagined that he was about to bid farewell to more than half a century of "toilet dumping" life and move into a 270 square meter three story rural villa. Nowadays, there has been a qualitative leap in the living conditions of Wang Zongde and his wife in their later years.
As early as 2019, Gelong Village in Waigang Town, Jiading District began preparations for housing renewal. After more than a year of effort, it was officially launched on January 1, 2021. Recently, the second batch of housing renewal work is also coming to an end, and 102 villagers are gradually moving to new homes. Recently, reporters walked into this village located at the junction of Jiading and Taicang, witnessing the transformation of the appearance of Gelong Village in the past three years.
Dangerous houses become villas, significantly improving living quality
"The corner of the wall is cracked, and the gap is so big that the whole arm can be extended in." Eight years ago, Chen Xuefeng, the Secretary of the Party General Branch and Director of the Village Committee of Gelong Village, had just taken office in the village. The villagers took him to his home to see the dilapidated old rural house.
Previously, many rural houses in Gelong Village were built in the 1970s, more than half a century ago. Wang Zongde described the old house as "not much cement is needed to build a house". At that time, materials were scarce, and the houses were mostly brick and concrete structures, and even were simply built with rotten mud. Housing safety became a concern for him and his wife.
How to improve the living conditions of villagers? Gelong Village is home to the cultural heritage resources of the "Five Elders", including old rivers, old streets, old houses, old trees, and old temples. It is one of the first batch of municipal level preserved and protected villages in Waigang Town, and villagers will not relocate. In that case, house renovation and reconstruction have become the only choice to improve the living quality of villagers.
The exterior style of the renovated new house is very uniform. Photo by Zhu Yawen
As the first batch of pilot rural houses for renovation in Waigang Town, the first batch of 76 dilapidated houses renovation in Gelong Village was launched in January 2021. Like most areas in the suburbs of Shanghai, the original layout of rural houses in Gelong Village was small, scattered, and disorderly, which did not conform to the principle of land conservation and intensive use. The first step of renovation is to first organize the land, moving multiple low and impractical bungalows that originally occupied a large area to the planned land or renovating them in place, and concentrating them into two to three story small buildings. Part of the freed area is used to widen roads, while the other part is used to build public facilities such as green belts, further enhancing the villagers' sense of achievement and satisfaction with the living environment.
Chen Xuefeng is currently inspecting the renovation of the house on site. Respondents provide pictures
After more than a year of renovation, Wang Zongde and his wife have now moved into a new house. The reporter entered the room and saw that Wang Zongde's newly purchased large-sized color TV was placed in the living room, playing the old movie "Red Sun". In the farmer's villa in Gelong Village, the most common layout is for the elderly to live on the first floor, children to live on the second floor, and grandchildren to live on the third floor. "My granddaughter is extremely happy! There are four rooms in a row on the third floor, all of which are hers - one is the dressing room, one is the bedroom, one is the computer room, and there is also one for her to store miscellaneous items. The house has been renovated, and my granddaughter has come back more diligently!" Wang Zongde couldn't help but feel excited.
What makes Wang Zongde even happier is that moving into a new house also means improving sanitation facilities. "Pouring the toilet" has become a thing of the past, and the problem of bathing has been solved. There is no longer a need to go to the public bathroom every two weeks to take a shower.
Wang Zongde and his wife have been staying in a new house for over half a month. Photo by Zhu Yawen
"At present, the first batch of 76 households have settled in, and the second batch of 102 households have also started to hand over their houses. The supporting infrastructure such as water and electricity is under continuous construction. Currently, over 50% of the old houses in the village have been renovated, and the third batch of renovations is expected to be launched in the second half of this year, covering 20-30 households," Chen Xuefeng told reporters.
How to renovate the farmhouse? The villagers have their own the final say
In order to maintain the overall unity of appearance, Gelong Village has hired a professional design company to strictly follow the "Shanghai Rural Villager Housing Construction Management Measures", design the bungalow as a new housing with the style of Jiangnan Water Town, and develop a special housing type book for villagers to choose from. While ensuring a unified appearance, villagers can make personalized modifications to details such as eaves, courtyards, and door openings. Planting flowers and plants, setting up rockeries, and purchasing swing chairs... Reporters found during their visits that many outdoor courtyards in new houses have been taken care of with distinctive features.
There are many potted plants placed outside the courtyard of the new house. Photo by Zhu Yawen
The autonomy of villagers in building houses is also reflected in the selection of construction parties. Chen Xuefeng introduced that during the promotion of the first batch of 76 households' housing renovation, a total of nine construction representatives were selected from the three plots involved to conduct qualification audits and price comparisons on ten construction companies, and to propose renovation needs. Members of the village committee attended. Ultimately, the villagers themselves will select three construction companies and decide on the land to be renovated by drawing lots, ensuring fairness and justice. "The second batch of renovations involves several households' forming groups' and inviting the construction party. The village is responsible for qualification review and requires the construction party to pay a deposit of 500000 yuan to ensure the interests of the villagers."
Representatives of villagers building houses negotiate with the construction party. Respondents provide pictures
The process of advancing the renovation of old houses has not been smooth sailing. Due to the fact that there are some houses built with walls in rural areas, renovation is not the responsibility of a single family and requires two or more households to form a group, which also facilitates the redesign of surrounding roads and greenery. Chen Xuefeng told reporters that this situation requires village cadres to do ideological work door-to-door, and if it is not feasible, they will consider adjusting the rural housing renovation plan. "The renovation of houses must be based on the wishes of the villagers. Previously, we also encountered situations where the renovation could not be carried out due to unclear property ownership. At this time, village cadres need to clarify the contradictions and carry out targeted work."
Chen Weiming, a villager living at No. 264 Gelong Village, is a beneficiary of rural residential renovation. When the first batch of housing renovations were being carried out in the village, he was still in a wait-and-see state. When he saw the neighboring house being renovated properly, he immediately registered for the second batch of housing renovations upon hearing the news. Nowadays, the old and dilapidated houses have been demolished and transformed into a 220 square meter single story three story villa. The new house is comfortable to live in, and the 63 year old villager is overjoyed: "The renovation was completed in November last year, and I plan to move in this month."
Chen Weiming's new living room is transparent and bright. Photo by Zhu Yawen
Where does the money come from for rural house renovation? The renovation cost for Wang Zhongde and Chen Weiming's three story villa is about 500000 yuan, with a total of nearly one million yuan including decoration costs. "The villagers have given up the idea of relocation and are more willing to contribute their whole family to build their houses. The willingness to bid farewell to the 'old and dilapidated' and move into new houses is generally very strong, after all, everyone's roots are here." Chen Xuefeng told reporters that the funds for house renovation are mainly raised by the villagers themselves, and the village is responsible for planning the overall appearance, reviewing the qualifications of the construction party, supporting the construction of roads and green public service facilities. At the same time, to encourage villagers to renovate, Gelong Village will reward houses that have passed the acceptance inspection and meet the requirements of the village's unique features with a standard of 500 yuan per square meter. Based on this estimate, in fact, about one-third of the renovation costs per household are borne by the government.
The villagers signed a contract for renovation. Respondents provide pictures
To be livable and also suitable for business
Nowadays, in Gelong Village, the sixty or seventy rural houses located on Gelong Old Street still maintain their original appearance. Chen Xuefeng introduced that this involves how to fully preserve historical relics during the renovation process, and it is necessary to "think carefully before formulating a new plan.".
Looking ahead to the future, grassroots cadres in Waigang Town have other considerations. The relevant person in charge of Waigang Town told reporters that villagers are more concerned about whether rural houses are livable. On this basis, the village and town also need to consider whether the renovated rural houses and rural landscape are "suitable for business", which involves how to use them reasonably after renovation.
The old houses near Gelong Old Street have not been renovated yet, and a new plan needs to be developed. Photo by Zhu Yawen
The reporter learned that in some rural areas, a major reason for the strong willingness of villagers to renovate old houses is that this is a "long-term investment" - renting out renovated houses can increase rent several times. But currently, most of the houses in Gelong Village are still mainly occupied by villagers themselves.
"There were originally three factories between the village committee and the village farmer's market, which were cleared three years ago and are waiting for good projects to come in." Chen Xuefeng admitted that he is still exploring pillar industries suitable for the development of his village. In his view, relying on the historical and cultural resources of Gelong Old Street to explore the industrial development path of combining agriculture, culture and tourism is the future path of Gelong Village's "industrial revitalization". The renovation of rural houses is also paving the way for it.
Village officials and villagers discussed and discussed the renovation of old houses. Respondents provide pictures
"Some villagers have also divided their renovated new houses into five or six rooms and rented them out separately, which not only poses certain safety hazards but also is not beneficial to the long-term development of the village." Chen Xuefeng told reporters that after suitable enterprises sign contracts to settle in the village, the village committee plans to rent out the idle houses of the villagers and create them into homestays or blue collar apartments with consistent styles. This not only facilitates management, but also serves as industrial supporting infrastructure, better realizing the economic value of rural housing.
