The Chenggong Ling (成功嶺) military training camp would be the most ideal location for the Legislative Yuan to relocate to, the Taichung City Government said on Thursday in response to growing sentiment among Taichung residents that the legislature is a “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) facility, as people tend to stage protests around it.
The remark came after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taichung City Councilor Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) spoke out against Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung’s (林佳龍) proposal to move the legislature from Taipei to Taichung and transform the central municipality into a political hub.
Lin has unveiled three possible sites in Taichung’s Wurih District (烏日) for the proposed relocation: a 30 hectare site at Chenggong Ling, a 4.2 hectare urban planning zone near the Taichung High-Speed Rail Station, and a 10.5 hectare site in an unused plot that was formerly an arsenal.
Photo: Huang Chung-shan, Taipei Times
As groups tend to protest outside the legislature, it would not be appropriate to move it to downtown Taichung, Chen said, adding that Chenggong Ling would be a better option.
A growing number of demonstrations have been held outside the legislature over the past few years and Taichung residents largely view the legislature as a NIMBY institution, he said.
NIMBY describes undesirable public infrastructure or facilities such as landfills, cemeteries, gas stations and high-voltage power towers.
Moving the legislature to the former arsenal site would have too great an effect on traffic, while priority should be given to economic development in the urban planning zone, Chen said.
Chenggong Ling is a vast place that would ensure that city residents’ lives would not be affected no matter how many people protest, the city councilor said.
The Taichung City Government said that after conducting an evaluation of all possible sites, it likewise believes that Chenggong Ling would be the most desirable site for a possible relocation.
The municipality owns about 30 hectares of land at Chenggong Ling, which covers an area of more than 300 hectares, Lin said.
The area owned by the city government is being leased to the Ministry of National Defense at no charge, the mayor said.
If lawmakers were to decide to move the legislature, the municipal government would like to request that the ministry return the area, Lin said.
Jhongsing New Village (中興新村) in Nantou County, the seat of the Taiwan Provincial Government, or Guangfu New Village (光復新村) in Taichung’s Wufeng District (霧峰), home to the Taiwan Provincial Consultative Council, could be used as temporary sites for the legislature during the transitional phase, he added.
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