Ban on new housing, malls in Hanoi’s Old Quarters
The document said
underground construction works or entertainment sites such as shopping
malls, restaurants and hotels will also be banned in most of streets
except for Tran Quang Khai and Tran Nhat Duat where the architecture of
historical sites will not be affected.
Most of
street-front houses in the Old Quarters will not be more than 12 metres
in height, an equivalence to three storeys. Houses with an area of more
than 70 square metres will be required to have a yard for green space,
it said.
In the near future, the city authority
will clear the streets by removing advertisement boards and encroachment
areas of all houses in the vicinity.
Le Ngoc Lan, who has lived on Hang Ma Street for nearly 50 years, said he totally agrees with the regulation.
"The trade centres or high-storey buildings will definitely ruin the
typical architecture of the area and worsen the already-chaotic traffic.
The Old Quarters needs to reduce the number of residents living in it,
not to attract more people from other places," he said.
"Moreover, I think it is difficult for the authority to handle the
situation in case of emergency such as fire or electrical leakage."
Nguyen My Linh, a resident in Hang Chieu Street, said that the
regulations would help bring more green spaces to the area which has
already become cramped and stuffy.
The Old Quarters
is known as an historical site with typical architecture of the old
capital. It attracts foreigners with its historic architecture and
colorful daily life, with ancient pagodas hidden down dim alleys, street
markets, sidewalk restaurants, and shockingly narrow tubular houses
with the tile roof, old built moss-grown wall…
The
site is also the most densely populated area in the city of 823 persons
per hectare. Local residents have faced big challenges such as poor
living conditions, downgraded facilities and chaotic traffic.
A plan to move 1,800 households in the Old Quarters to a new
residential area in Long Bien district has been finalised. The plan is
expected to reduce the population density from 823 people to 500 people
per hectare by 2020.-VNA