Unauthorized Buildings in Suzhou Creek Project Demolished

By Lu Ren

"The environment here is great. To demolishing unauthorized buildings is to make us walk along Suzhou Creek better and beautify the river banks," said Yu Hongli, a resident near Tiantong Road and Wusong Road. Yu has recently taken exercises at the riverside of North Suzhou Road every day and enjoyed beautiful scenery on the both sides of Suzhou Creek.

By the end of this year, Shanghai will open up 42-kilometer public space on both sides of Suzhou Creek, and the improvement project of waterfront space of North Suzhou Road is being advanced in an orderly manner. According to the District Urban Management and Law Enforcement Bureau, the unauthorized buildings on North Suzhou Road are demolished ahead of time.

Since the beginning of this year, the Bureau has strengthened inspection and control along North Suzhou Creek whilst cementing the management, and propelled integrated environmental improvement along the Creek. There are 2 over-10-year-old white cabins on North Suzhou Road and near the intersection of Wusong Road, which used to be a ticket service center of a travel agency. Later, it is leased to a private owner as a barbecue shop, and it is found to be unauthorized during a survey by the North Bund Detachment of the Bureau. Making on-site survey and reading urban archives drawings, the Detachment has interviewed the relevant heads of the enterprise who built it, and served the "Order to Demolish Unauthorized Buildings within a Time-limit Decision” to start demolishing it. Upon interviews and talks, the enterprise and the leasing parties were willing to demolish it, and signed for the demolition power of attorney.

However, the staff from the barbecue shop tried to delay in moving out because of rent paying just a few days before the proposed demolition. In the face of this sudden situation, the Detachment made a rational analysis, increased the publicity and education, and simultaneously set up a communication platform between them. With consultation and consensus, the goods in the barbecue shop were removed a few days ago; and the Detachment cooperated with the third party to demolish the shop.

Since the outbreak, the Bureau has pooled law-enforcement forces and the forces of all relevant units to support each other according to the actual situation along Suzhou Creek, strives to improve standardization, refinement and quality of urban management, and makes efforts on both COVID-19 control and urban management.

Hongkou will optimize the waterfront public space this year, in order to complete the improvement project of North Suzhou Road in the North Bund.