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XI’AN and Xianyang in west China’s Shaanxi Province are among the oldest cities in China and both once served as the country’s capital in ancient times. In May 2011， the central government decided to create a new district at the junction of the two cities that feature both idyllic sceneries and modern amenities. This project is an exploration of a new path to China’s urbanization.
A Mindset Shift
China has already established several new urban areas in different cities， including Pudong in Shanghai and Binhai in Tianjin. Explaining what is novel about the young Xixian， Wang Jun， executive deputy director of its administrative committee， said that the development of Xixian New District has been guided by new concepts that were not used by its counterparts.
Wang said that China’s urbanization drive since 1949， which has been mainly powered by new industrial projects and economic development zones， has caused several problems， such as insufficient infrastructures and services in urban areas， the yawning divide between urban and rural areas， overdrawing land and the escalating strain on resources and the environment. He said that after drawing on past experiences， China has put forward a new type of urbanization that is designed and implemented in the context of industrialization， agricultural modernization and informationization.
Wang believed that China is about to embrace its third wave of urbanization， which will unleash a major social transition. He said that in the past people in China mostly looked at urbanization in terms of its economic implications， such as the expansion of cities， the growth of urban population and development of certain industries. People now perceive also its social dimension， which is the core characteristic of the current urbanization drive.
Xixian’s development strategy can be summed up as giving farmers a profession rather than a social identity. As a result， in this area farmers or people with rural hukou enjoy the same social services and benefits in employment， education， healthcare and pensions as urban residents. It is common for farmers in Xixian to find stable employment in urban areas while keeping their farmland at home.
“Farmers’ land is protected by law and is transferable. Farmers can sublet their plots if they find jobs in the city. This guarantees these farmers two sources of income： salary from an urban job and proceeds from land rent，” Wang explained. New Countryside
Xixian consists of five sections， known as “new cities” to locals， each with its own industrial， residential and modern agricultural areas. In the latter， Xixian is channeling capital from urban areas into transforming its countryside into modern farms.
Wang said that， different from smallscale， household-based agricultural operations and commercial agriculture characterized by large-scale production of crops for sale， the modern agricultural model being developed is a complex industry involving all three of the primary， secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy. Complex farms will not only be able to provide urban residents with grain， vegetables and groceries， but also serve as areas of ecological functions and tourism resorts.
Two wine estates are being built in Xixian that double as tourist destinations. Both have their own vineyards and wineries that operate wine tasting trips. These projects are new trials in making agriculture a modern business. A farm resort showcasing intelligent eco-technologies and a floricultural facility with state-of-art technologies are also under construction.
A Comfortable Lifestyle
The star of Xixian is its “Three-Dimensional City，” an urban development project funded by Vantone Holdings Co.， Ltd.
According to Feng Lun， founder and chairman of Vantone， the motto for this project is “a micro city， a good life.” He said the development of this new city is guided by four concepts. First is intensive land use to avoid urban sprawl， with rooftops， for example， serving not only as protection against the elements but also as school playgrounds and parking lots. Secondly， priority for industries with plentiful job opportunities and sustainable development prospects， such as the medical care industry – a medi-cal facility with 2，000 beds will need to hire five times that amount of workers. Then there are environmental aspects of the city， with infrastructure planning and energy-conserving buildings that minimize carbon emissions. Last but not least is the emphasis on residents’quality of life， including higher personal incomes and improved social order.
Wang said in this planned “3-D city，”many people will live within walking distance of their workplaces and many others will cycle to work. The city design also includes a rail system to encourage more people to use public transportation.
This project is turning from blueprint to reality in Xixian， and in the future， the 20 “vassal cities” around Xi’an will form a circle of living and working centers that residents can reach by public transportation within one hour， significantly reducing the use of private cars. Pollution Free
With the development of Chinese economy and economic restructuring， companies originally located in China’s eastern costal areas are now heading inland. Xi’an enjoys a competitive edge over other cities in western China with its strong sci & tech and education sectors. It， however， has turned down the relocation requests of energy-intensive and high-pollution industries， preferring to attract companies in the most promising new industries. It is out of this desire that Xixian is building a data industrial park in Fengxi New City.
Liu Yubin， head of Fengxi’s admin- istrative committee， said the park will include data storage， a call center， an Internet data center， a disaster recovery center and a data exchange and sharing platform. The park intends to explore new commercial models and build itself into a national-level data processing center and a national government resources background processing and backup center.
China’s three largest telecom service providers， China Mobile， China Telecom and China Unicom， as well as Shaanxi Broadcast & TV Network and the National Population Data Processing and Backup Center， have committed to open branches in Fengxi New City.
Protecting Environment and Cultural Heritage
Xixian boasts a wealth of cultural heritage from the Western Zhou Dynasty （1046-771 B.C.）， Qin Dynasty （221-207 B.C.） and Western Han Dynasty（202 B.C.-9 A.D.）， including sites of the ancient Xianyang and Chang’an cities， many of which are located in Qinhan New City.
From the very beginning of Xixian’s planning the Shaanxi provincial government asked the district’s administrative committee to protect cultural heritage under its jurisdiction. Wang Jun said that the legacy of China’s ancient civilization should exist in harmony with modern development as the area explores a new path of urbanization.
To this end， Xixian has pooled a huge amount of money into river management and afforestation projects in Wulingyuan， which is home to many Western Han royal mausoleums. Nearly 70 hectares of pine trees have been planted next to the mausoleum of Emperor Liu Bang， founder of the Western Han Dynasty.
Di Tao， deputy director of the Urban Planning Bureau of Qinhan New City， told China Today about a comprehensive restoration program along the Weihe River， which， covering nearly 270 hectares， has made this section of the Weihe among the most scenic parts of the 818-km river. Qinhan， said Di， intends to protect its historical sites as well as to develop history-themed tourism， finance， trade and modern agriculture as its pillar industries.
A Mindset Shift
China has already established several new urban areas in different cities， including Pudong in Shanghai and Binhai in Tianjin. Explaining what is novel about the young Xixian， Wang Jun， executive deputy director of its administrative committee， said that the development of Xixian New District has been guided by new concepts that were not used by its counterparts.
Wang said that China’s urbanization drive since 1949， which has been mainly powered by new industrial projects and economic development zones， has caused several problems， such as insufficient infrastructures and services in urban areas， the yawning divide between urban and rural areas， overdrawing land and the escalating strain on resources and the environment. He said that after drawing on past experiences， China has put forward a new type of urbanization that is designed and implemented in the context of industrialization， agricultural modernization and informationization.
Wang believed that China is about to embrace its third wave of urbanization， which will unleash a major social transition. He said that in the past people in China mostly looked at urbanization in terms of its economic implications， such as the expansion of cities， the growth of urban population and development of certain industries. People now perceive also its social dimension， which is the core characteristic of the current urbanization drive.
Xixian’s development strategy can be summed up as giving farmers a profession rather than a social identity. As a result， in this area farmers or people with rural hukou enjoy the same social services and benefits in employment， education， healthcare and pensions as urban residents. It is common for farmers in Xixian to find stable employment in urban areas while keeping their farmland at home.
“Farmers’ land is protected by law and is transferable. Farmers can sublet their plots if they find jobs in the city. This guarantees these farmers two sources of income： salary from an urban job and proceeds from land rent，” Wang explained. New Countryside
Xixian consists of five sections， known as “new cities” to locals， each with its own industrial， residential and modern agricultural areas. In the latter， Xixian is channeling capital from urban areas into transforming its countryside into modern farms.
Wang said that， different from smallscale， household-based agricultural operations and commercial agriculture characterized by large-scale production of crops for sale， the modern agricultural model being developed is a complex industry involving all three of the primary， secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy. Complex farms will not only be able to provide urban residents with grain， vegetables and groceries， but also serve as areas of ecological functions and tourism resorts.
Two wine estates are being built in Xixian that double as tourist destinations. Both have their own vineyards and wineries that operate wine tasting trips. These projects are new trials in making agriculture a modern business. A farm resort showcasing intelligent eco-technologies and a floricultural facility with state-of-art technologies are also under construction.
A Comfortable Lifestyle
The star of Xixian is its “Three-Dimensional City，” an urban development project funded by Vantone Holdings Co.， Ltd.
According to Feng Lun， founder and chairman of Vantone， the motto for this project is “a micro city， a good life.” He said the development of this new city is guided by four concepts. First is intensive land use to avoid urban sprawl， with rooftops， for example， serving not only as protection against the elements but also as school playgrounds and parking lots. Secondly， priority for industries with plentiful job opportunities and sustainable development prospects， such as the medical care industry – a medi-cal facility with 2，000 beds will need to hire five times that amount of workers. Then there are environmental aspects of the city， with infrastructure planning and energy-conserving buildings that minimize carbon emissions. Last but not least is the emphasis on residents’quality of life， including higher personal incomes and improved social order.
Wang said in this planned “3-D city，”many people will live within walking distance of their workplaces and many others will cycle to work. The city design also includes a rail system to encourage more people to use public transportation.
This project is turning from blueprint to reality in Xixian， and in the future， the 20 “vassal cities” around Xi’an will form a circle of living and working centers that residents can reach by public transportation within one hour， significantly reducing the use of private cars. Pollution Free
With the development of Chinese economy and economic restructuring， companies originally located in China’s eastern costal areas are now heading inland. Xi’an enjoys a competitive edge over other cities in western China with its strong sci & tech and education sectors. It， however， has turned down the relocation requests of energy-intensive and high-pollution industries， preferring to attract companies in the most promising new industries. It is out of this desire that Xixian is building a data industrial park in Fengxi New City.
Liu Yubin， head of Fengxi’s admin- istrative committee， said the park will include data storage， a call center， an Internet data center， a disaster recovery center and a data exchange and sharing platform. The park intends to explore new commercial models and build itself into a national-level data processing center and a national government resources background processing and backup center.
China’s three largest telecom service providers， China Mobile， China Telecom and China Unicom， as well as Shaanxi Broadcast & TV Network and the National Population Data Processing and Backup Center， have committed to open branches in Fengxi New City.
Protecting Environment and Cultural Heritage
Xixian boasts a wealth of cultural heritage from the Western Zhou Dynasty （1046-771 B.C.）， Qin Dynasty （221-207 B.C.） and Western Han Dynasty（202 B.C.-9 A.D.）， including sites of the ancient Xianyang and Chang’an cities， many of which are located in Qinhan New City.
From the very beginning of Xixian’s planning the Shaanxi provincial government asked the district’s administrative committee to protect cultural heritage under its jurisdiction. Wang Jun said that the legacy of China’s ancient civilization should exist in harmony with modern development as the area explores a new path of urbanization.
To this end， Xixian has pooled a huge amount of money into river management and afforestation projects in Wulingyuan， which is home to many Western Han royal mausoleums. Nearly 70 hectares of pine trees have been planted next to the mausoleum of Emperor Liu Bang， founder of the Western Han Dynasty.
Di Tao， deputy director of the Urban Planning Bureau of Qinhan New City， told China Today about a comprehensive restoration program along the Weihe River， which， covering nearly 270 hectares， has made this section of the Weihe among the most scenic parts of the 818-km river. Qinhan， said Di， intends to protect its historical sites as well as to develop history-themed tourism， finance， trade and modern agriculture as its pillar industries.