The New Taipei City Government’s development plans for Sinjhuang District (新莊) would see residents forced out of their homes, residents of the Wenzaizun (塭仔圳) area said yesterday, calling on the Ministry of the Interior to reject rezoning plans.
About 20 residents from five different neighborhoods protested outside the ministry, shouting slogans accusing the city government of pushing plans that, if approved, would leave them homeless.
“We are legal residents, but we only have small 15 ping [49.6m2] townhouses and after rezoning, the government will appropriate 8 ping, leaving us with too little space to rebuild,” Wenzaizun Self-Help Association head Chiu Shu-wen (邱淑雯) said, adding that financial compensation offered by the government would not be enough to purchase a new home in the area.
Unlike urban renewal, rezoning laws allow the government to annex part of the land as part of a broader reapportionment, she said.
Construction in the area had been forbidden for decades due to risk of flooding, with new development plans under consideration following the completion of the Sinjhuang MRT Line, with an MRT line connecting Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport with the Greater Taipei area also to run through Sinjhuang when it begins operation later.
Campiagners criticized the city government for unrealistic plans that failed to take residents’ concerns into account.
“No one would object if the city government was truly committed to helping the area move in the right direction, but the proposals call for the tearing down of numerous apartment buildings, even though New Taipei City’s vacancy rates are the highest in the nation,” Taiwan Anti-Forced Eviction Alliance member Jia Bo-kai (賈伯楷) said, adding that nearby rezoned areas have not been filled in.
Jia said that despite previous city government promises to listen to residents’ concerns, plans submitted to the ministry remain unchanged.
Campaigners also called for the government to allow small factories to relocate within rezoned areas, saying that many local residents would lose their jobs if the factories were forced to close as called for under the plans.
Factory owner and association head Lin Wen-cheng (林文政) said it might be possible for factories to be relocated to the site of a former “trash mountain” in nearby Wugu District (五股), but that plans propose the site be developed in 2022.
Following a review of the city government’s plan, the Department of Land Administration instructed the city to hold further discussions with residents and present clearer plans to address their concerns prior to final approval.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
Passengers on Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) will be required to use headphones and make phone calls in gangways under new “quiet travel” rules starting Sept. 22. THSR Chairman Shih Che (史哲) told media that THSR will run a three-month promotional campaign to ensure widespread adoption of the new rules. Those repeatedly ignoring the guidance face the potential termination of their transport contract, which can result in them getting escorted off the train, according to THSR. Shih shared his hope to cultivate an environment conducive to rest and reading for the train’s passengers, stating that these changes aim to “promote self-discipline” among passengers
RSS