Communities in Beijing to open up to public

Beijing authorities are promoting a refurbishing program that aims to make communities look less isolated and more open to the public, Beijing Morning Post reported on Thursday.

A community in Fanshang district will be the first pilot zone for the program, which plans to demolish some of the walls encircling the communities and put in a leisure zone for the public's use, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission for Urban Planning (BMCUP).

The move will turn the communities, especially upscale ones, from appalling to appealing, according to experts.

"Most communities in Beijing are enclosed due to security concerns and living traditions. The more upscale a community is, the more it looks like a prison," said Fang Xing, a design director at property developer Vanke Co.

"People walking outside the communities feel like they are isolated and there is no feel of intimacy," said Wang Wei, deputy director of the planning commission.

The program will be jointly implemented by developers, the government as well as its landscaping department. It is expected to expand to more communities in Beijing, the commission said.