Govt halts courtyard project

Cultural heritage officials and experts in the field inspected a historic courtyard on Sunday to check whether the construction work complies with the government-approved repair project.

The official check came after a cultural heritage activist reported to Beijing Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage (BMACH), that the reconstruction work at No.51 Shijia Hutong, Dongcheng district, had changed the original look of the house, in violation of the terms of the project.

A former resident of the courtyard, Hong Huang, a magazine publisher and celebrity blogger, first alerted heritage activists to the construction on her microblog on June 23, saying that the house, a cultural relic protection unit, had been torn down.

After seeing the microblog post, Zeng Yizhi, a cultural heritage activist, visited the courtyard twice in recent weeks, and reported on its situation to BMACH.

Zeng said that the back wall of one of the buildings in the yard was torn down and some other walls were newly built.

"Compared with some historic photos of the courtyard, the original look of the house is being destroyed," she said.

Zeng also told the Global Times that although the repair project to the courtyard had been approved by cultural authorities, there are requirements to adhere to.

"Since the courtyard is the former residence of well-known dignitaries, the approved project requires that the repair work should keep the house's original structure and look, and the construction permit should have been applied for before work started," she said.

Zhao Jianming, an official with BMACH, confirmed Sunday that the Beijing Real Estate Group, which is responsible for the construction work, is still applying for its permit.

"The company started construction without a permit, and we ordered it to stop on Friday morning," he told the Global Times.

Although ordered to stop, construction was still ongoing Saturday, the Beijing News reported.

A local resident, surnamed Li, who lives near the courtyard, told the Global Times Sunday that the construction started about two months ago and just stopped on Sunday.

"I'm not sure whether the buildings inside were destroyed. But I saw many logs, maybe used as rafters, and a lot of brick debris transported away by vehicles," she said.

"Most of the logs were rotten, unable to be used any more," she said.

The courtyard gate was closed on Sunday. Two men, who claimed to be staff members of Beijing Real Estate Group, stood by the gate to bar reporters from coming inside.

It was quiet inside the courtyard, and piles of brick rubble could be seen through a crack in the gates.

Officials, including Zhao, and heritage experts arrived at about 3:30 pm, and were allowed to enter the site.

Zhao said that since there are many cultural relics in the site, he could not give a specific date as to when the results of the inspection would be released.

"Experts will first check the construction site and then do a very careful comparison with the original appearance, to identify whether the work has followed the remit of the repair project. This process takes time," he said.

Hong, 51, is the daughter of Zhang Hanzhi, a former diplomat who taught English to Mao Zedong. Zhang, who died in 2008, is the adopted daughter of Zhang Shizhao, a well-known 20th century Chinese politician.

The courtyard became the residence of Zhang Shizhao in 1959 under the auspices of former premier Zhou Enlai, and was named a cultural relic protection unit in 1984.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed the house as State property and asked Hong to move out in 2009. In July 2011, Hong announced in her microblog that she had returned the house to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Calls to the Beijing Real Estate Group went unanswered on Sunday.