Demolition danger for silk store facade

Residents and experts raised strong objections on February 11 to a government response to an alleged demolition of a protected historic building near Qianmen, accusing the government of destroying old districts in the name of relocation and restoration.

The former site of traditional silk store Qianxiangyi at No.11 Langfang Toutiao Hutong, Xicheng district, is to be demolished, with chunks of the historic facade set be sold on the black market, alleged witnesses who live nearby.

Cultural heritage protection activists and architects received tip-offs from residents and reported it to municipal cultural heritage officials Thursday in an attempt to call off the demolition, and the district government responded through its microblog Friday.

It was an evacuation of Wuliang Hotel, the site's current tenant, rather than a demolition, the district government said in the online statement.

"The removal of hotel facilities led to a misunderstanding that the site will be demolished, while according to our plan the original site will be protected and repaired in accordance with the surrounding historic style," the statement reads.

However, nearby residents alleged that this was not the case. Beijing Dashilan Yongxing Real Estate, the developer of the area, hired a demolition company and planned to sell parts of the facade on the black market, said a resident of Langfang Toutiao Hutong, surnamed Cai.

"I saw three people who got out of a Honda make deals with the demolition team. They offered big prices for the building's construction materials, including white marble and stone carvings from the facade," Cai alleged. Some buyers are private collectors, and some buy materials to build their own ancient-style inns to make money, he claimed.

"The person living across the hutong was asked to stay at a hotel temporarily, because the demolition of the old site might crush his house," Cai said.

Qianxiangyi, a traditional Beijing silk brand established in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), is one of the best known silk brands in China. The store moved to Zhubaoshi Jie, north of Qianmen Dajie in 1955, and the previous site became the Wuliang Hotel some 10 years ago. Most of the site had already been rebuilt, and the facade is one of the original features remaining.

The demolition team started moving beds and furniture out on Friday, said another anonymous local resident.

"They haven't begun tearing down the building, but I'm afraid without any effort or outcry from heritage protectors, this place will be ruined," he said.

Kong Fanzhi, head of the municipal cultural heritage administration assigned Xicheng cultural commission to handle the matter and promised the old site will be preserved, said hutong protector Hua Xinmin.　

"But the district government is lying," she said, explaining other historic structures in the area, including No.19 on the same hutong, was demolished 18 months ago in the name of "repairs to historic districts," the same reason the government offered this time.