Beijing undergoing biggest changes for Olympics (Agencies) Updated: 2004-09-03 09:39
Beijing is in the midst of a dizzying architectural transformation aimed at
creating a modern, high-tech metropolis by 2008 when the Chinese capital will
have its moment in the Olympic spotlight.
A painting
shows the National Stadium nicknamed "Bird Nest." [newsphoto] | As
the breeze shimmers through the tall grass, the 405-hectare (1,000-acre) plot of
almost pristine land earmarked for the Olympic Green in north Beijing seems an
unlikely place to attract world attention.
But this piece of Beijing real estate is the scene for some of the most
ambitious urban planning ever seen in China.
A Modle of the the
17,000-seat National Swimming Center, which will resemble a cube of water
miraculously suspended in thin air.
[newsphoto] | It is where the city is preparing to
erect the 80,000-seat, 360-million-dollar National Stadium, nicknamed "bird's
nest" because of its spectacular giant lattice-work structure of irregularly
angled metal girders.
It is also the location of the 17,000-seat National Swimming Center, which
will resemble a cube of water miraculously suspended in thin air, as if by some
mysterious magnetic force.
Architecture that is both massive in scale and bold in conception will form
the physical surroundings of the 2008 Olympics, designed to wow thousands
visiting China for the first time and billions watching on television.
Eighteen sports facilities are being built to reinforce existing stadia for
the sporting showcase.
"We will create masterpieces of sports facilities that reflect the
integration of construction technologies, architectural art and environmental
protection," Beijing's Olympic action plan promises.
Given the unprecedented change the Chinese capital is already experiencing
courtesy of an Olympic construction boom, experts believe Beijing will live up
to the hype.
The capital is undergoing the kind of fundamental transformation that big
cities usually experience only once in their history -- like the creation of
modern Paris with its broad boulevards in the early 19th century.
"This dwarves everything," said Laurence Brahm, a US lawyer and expert on the
archictectural heritage of China's ancient capital.
"Since (Mongolian ruler) Kubilai Khan set up the city in the 13th century,
this is by far the most excessive overhaul," he said.
No expense is being spared as Beijing has promised to deliver "the best-ever
Olympic Games" without the last-minute headaches that dogged the build-up to
this summer's games in Athens.
The Chinese were so determined to avoid the last-minute Greek scramble to
have venues ready that IOC president Jacques Rogge admitted he had to ask
Beijing to slow down to ensure the venues did not sit idle for too long.
Beijing International Airport, to be connected to the city center with a
fast-speed railway, is adding a new terminal, enabling the capital to handle an
expected 42 million passengers in 2008, up from 25 million in 2003.
To make downtown traffic more smooth in 2008, planners are adding 148.5
kilometers (93 miles) of new subways and urban railways.
"There's no question they are going to throw a huge amount of resources at
this," said Brahm. "It has a far greater domestic significance than in other
countries. It marks China's coming of age."
The Olympic construction fever is just the most prominent part of a sweeping
transformation of the once drab city.
Gone are the days when the height of architectural boldness was the
neo-classical Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen Square which was built to
suit the Stalinist aesthetics of the 1950s.
Right next to the Great Hall, construction workers are busy completing the
325-million-dollar bubble-shaped Beijing National Theater, nicknamed -- not
always lovingly -- the "duck egg" by the local population.
Other imaginative projects include the new headquarters for China Central
Television, which is still on the drawing-board and looks like three giant Ls
cobbled together.
The ambitious projects for Beijing -- a city undergoing huge cultural and
economic change -- will come at a cost.
According to Brahm, the destruction of old buildings will far exceed previous
radical changes such as Communist founding father Mao Zedong's decision to tear
down the ancient city wall half a century ago.
While few welcome this devastation, many experts argue it is an
inevitable side effect for a city that wishes to renew itself.
"Some traditional buildings will disappear," said Wu Huanjia, an architecture
professor at Beijing's Tsinghua University. "But it's impossible to just keep
everything in its place for ever. Cities will change."
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