The first batch of inner city face-lift projects began in Beijing yesterday, covering 9,635 households in Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chongwen, and Xuanwu districts. The projects are the largest in scale in Beijing since 1949, aimed at restoring both the physical appearance and environmental quality of historic neighborhoods.

The Beijing Municipal Government has appropriated 250 million yuan (US$33.8 million) to each district for the improvement projects. 1,474 courtyards and 40 hutongs are covered by the first phase. Older dwellings will be repaired to ensure a safe structure and neat and tidy appearance. All projects are scheduled to finish before June 30 of next year.

The central city areas will be transformed following the principles of improving people's living conditions and keeping the style of the ancient city. Relative departments will examine and approve the projects after they are completed. Old bricks, tiles, and stones will be used whenever possible to maintain authenticity.

Kitchens and bathrooms must be transformed to ensure people's basic living conditions, as stipulated by Beijing Municipal Commission of Urban Planning, Beijing Municipal Construction Committee, and Beijing Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage. It is necessary to keep the traditional style, layout, and scale of the hutongs while constructing pipelines, and the colors of each hutong must remain consistent.

Experts in the protection of cultural relics will serve as counselors for the improvement projects.

(China.org.cn by Yang Xi, November 29, 2007)