Taipei’s Nanmen Market (南門市場) was crowded yesterday ahead of its closure for demolition, with vendors to use a temporary site.
Construction is to begin after its last day today at the market, which has been at its current location for 38 years, after its beginnings as the Chitose Market (千歲市場) outside the city’s South Gate in the Japanese colonial period.
It was expanded and renamed in 1945, and in 1981 moved into the 10-story building that is to be torn down.
Photo: CNA
It is known for its food vendors, who sell pastries, glutinous rice products and ready-to-eat food, as well as dry goods. It is a popular shopping destination in the run-up to the Lunar New Year.
In coordination with construction of the Wanda MRT Line and to improve safety features, the Taipei City Government in 2016 said that the building would be torn down and rebuilt.
To mark the end of operations in the building, the market launched a three-day sale, with a farewell party at 6:30pm today.
The Taipei Market Administration Office said after it closes, the vendors have 10 days to move from the building and resettle in the temporary market site at 55 Hangzhou S Rd, Sec 2, which is to open for trial operations on Oct. 17.
The Taipei Public Works Department’s New Construction Office said that demolition is to begin in December and the new building is expected to be competed in January 2023, with the market to occupy the first two floors and two basement floors.
The building will also be connected to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall MRT Station via its first basement floor, the construction office said.
A free shuttle bus is to run between the site and Hangzhou Road from Oct. 17, operating between 8am and 6pm from Tuesday to Sunday for a limited period, it said.
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