A suggested redevelopment scheme for the city of Shanghai

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A SUGGESTED REDEVELOPMENT SCHEME FOR THE CITY OF SHANGHAI

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the School of Architecture University of Southern California

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Architecture

by Tsing Tai Chow November 1950

UMI Number: EP54694

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This thesis, w ritten by

.........Tsing.-T.ai...Ch.ow........... under the guidance of h X s .... Faculty Committee

,

and approved by a ll its members, has been presented to and accepted by the Council on Graduate Study and Research in p a rtial f u lfill­ ment of the requirements fo r the degree of

TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I.

PAGE'

INTR O D U C T I O N......................... . , . Statement of the problem Scope of the problem

II.

..............

..................

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ......................

1 2: 3! 4 J

Early foreign trade ....................

4:

The establishment of foreign settlements in Shanghai .........................

7 1

The establishment of the French Con­

a;

cession ............................. The establishment of the Greater Shanghai Municipality

.....................

.

9

The Japanese hostilities of 1932 and 1937

10

The ending of foreign settlements in Shanghai

...........................

The situation after 1942................

10;

11

1

11

;

The situation in Shanghai after World War I I ............................ III.

THE EXISTING SHANGHAI ..................... Shanghai today

.........................

The Ex-International Settlement ........ The Central District

................

The Bubbling Well District

..........

14 1 14 18 20 21

Ill CHAPTER

PAGE The Hongkew and Yangtzepoo District . . The Wu Chung District............ The Ex-French Concession The Central District

21 23

.................

23

...................

24

The Joffre District..............

24

The Petain District..............

25

The Greater Shanghai Municipality Housing conditions in Shanghai

26

.. . .

.............

29

Evidences of overcrowding .................

30

The terrace h o u s e s ................

31

Overcrowded condition in terrace houses .

35

Industrial conditions in Shanghai ...........

36 t

Raw materials.....................

37,

Transportation....................

38

Motive power

.............................

Classification of the existing industries Health and safety problems

40

...............

Social conditions .............. . . . . .

IV.

38

41 44

Family size and i n c o m e ............

45

Cost of l i v i n g ....................

46

The refugee p r o b l e m ................

47

THE MASTER PLAN— A PROPOSED REDEVELOPMENT S C H E M E ............ ....................

48

iv CHAPTER

PAGE General statement of the proposed master p l a n ...............................

48

Land use classification . . . . ........

*9

Determination of land uses

51!

Proposed land use scheme

............

................

54;

The regional commercial and civic center

55;

Treatment in the regionalcenter

56'

The industrial areas

. .. .

..................

59

. • .

60:

Residential and satellite communities . .

61

Grouping of i n d u s t r i e s .........

Road pattern and ring road system ........

62

Classification of roads ................

64

The road traffic problem

..............

66

..................

66

The ring road system

Outer ring r o a d s .............. . Principles of location anddesign

.. . of

outer ring r o a d s .......... .

...

'

67 i 67;

Intermediate ring roads ................

68: i

Inner ring roads

70

......................

»

i The arrangement of rail and water trans­ portation ............................. Open spaces and parks .................... The area required for small parks and

71> 74;

V

CHAPTER

PAGE recreational facilities ..............

75

Classification of parks and recreational

V.

areas . ..............................

76

THE NEIGHBOURHOOD..........................

83

Neighbourhood development ..............

85

Basic environmental standards for neighbourhoods

......................

Residential f a c i l i t i e s ..............* * Classification of dwelling types

85 89

. . . .

90

....

91

Education.............................

92

Neighbourhood community facilities

The elementary school ................ Nursery school Outdoor recreation

. . . ...........

93

....................

The neighbourhood playground

93

9k

........

95

The neighbourhood p a r k ..............

95

Indoor social and cultural facilities . .

96

Neighbourhood shopping facilities . . . .

97

Health service facilities ..............

93

Circulation..............................

99

Elements of the circulation system

...

99

Organization of the circulation system

101

Arrangement of the street system

....

101

vi CHAPTER

PAGE The public transit system in relation with the ne ighbourhood................ Pedestrian circulation

VI.

102

..................

103

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS......................

106

Summary

............................

105; t

Conclusions..............................

108!

B I B L I O G R A P H Y ......................................

113

A P P E N D I X ..........................................

117

LIST OF TABLES TABLE I.

PAGE

Area Breakdowns in the Greater Shanghai Municipality ..............................

II.

15

Positions of Various Districts and Their Heights above Sea Level in the Greater Shanghai Municipality

....................

16

LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE

PAGE

1. A Typical Neighbourhood Existing ............ 2. Typical Terrace House P l a n ........... 3. Shanghai Proposed Regional Master Plan 4. Road P a t t e r n ........................ 5. Specimen Cross Sections of Ring Roads

32

3^ . . . .

50

63

....

69

6 . Standards of Spacing and Size for Playgrounds,

11

7 . Proposed Theoretical Neighbourhood ..........

86

.

Playfields and P l a y l o t s .................

LIST OP PLATES PLATE

PAGE

1. Row H o u s e s ..................................

117

2. Single Person'sApartment

...................

118

3. High MultipleA p a r t m e n t .....................

119

3A.

Plot P l a n ..................................

120

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Shanghai is not the China of the Middle Kingdom, the ,China of temples and tombs, of Confucian classics, and of rare works of art.

Ever since the port was opened for

foreign trade, Shanghai has grown from a muddy walled town ;to a leading metropolis in the Far East. The port of i Shanghai was opened for trade under the Western ”gun~boat diplomacy,11 which resulted in treaties granting exclusive foreign privileges, and hence has absorbed much of Western ;influences.

Prior to 1942, there were three municipalities

in this metropolis, each exercising an exclusive adminis­ tration of its own.

Such a situation cannot be found

elsewhere in the world.

Numerous wars and hostilities were

held in and around Shanghai during the past decades.

Never*

| theless, due to its peculiar political development and influences, the city has managed to escape devastation.

In

iview of the political changes after World War II, Shanghai faces a unique opportunity for logical redevelopment.

The

city of Shanghai, like other large cities in the world i

today, is suffering from lack of proper planning.

It is

not the intention of this thesis to discuss at length the historical background of this city, nor its recent politi_cal issues.

But they must be considered as being vital

elements In the understanding of the nature and growth of the city, which in turn will lead to a better comprehension of the city and better planning prospects in the future. i Statement of the problem.

The city of Shanghai has :

been developed under three separate municipalities during i

the past century.

Due to the political differences and

vital commercial Interests involved between these three

J

independent local authorities, the development of the city j as a whole is not unique.

The city has grown without the

guidance of proper planning.

As a result, it is suffering

. i

from traffic congestion, poor housing accommodations, inadequate public utilities, and worst of all, the accumu­ lation of heavy population in the urban areas.

It might

j i

well be said that the city of Shanghai has grown with

,

hidden weaknesses.

;

These weaknesses, due to lack of plan-

ning, have been a painful experience for the people of Shanghai during the past years.

Yet a great city is always

in the process of gradual reconstruction.

The existing

shortcomings will indeed serve as guideposts in the future redevelopment of the city. j

Today the administration of Shanghai is under the jurisdiction of the Chinese government. for redevelopment lies immediately ahead.

The ultimate need It is unlikely

that these improvements would be made according to Western

| 1 i , i ;

standards, yet the writer believes that the aim to strive for better living is universal, disregarding the differ­ ences in social, cultural and economical backgrounds.

It

is the aim of this thesis to present an over-all concept of the future physical development of the city of Shanghai and to introduce the fundamentals of a planned community in the hope that it will contribute toward the betterment of living among the Scope of the

Chinese people. problem.

The study of thisthesis

includes in brief the existing conditions in Shanghai, its geographical location, and its housing, social and indus­ trial conditions.

In order to understand the background

of Its

development, the history of Shanghai, which is one

of the

main factors that have kept the city

development, has been mentioned In this study.

fromlogical With

reference to the existing conditions, a proposed redevelop­ ment scheme has been Introduced which tackles the problem of an over-all planning concept.

Neighbourhood require­

ments are also discussed for the purpose of supplementing the proposed scheme in order to achieve a unified goal for the better living of the Chinese people.

CHAPTER II HISTORICAL BACKGROUND There were three cities in Shanghai prior to 19^2. They were the International Settlement, the French Concession and the Chinese city*

Each had its own government

and exercised exclusive jurisdiction within its own boundaries*

The history of the growth of Shanghaifs three

cities can be found In the history of the expanding China trade of the last half of the nineteenth century*

The

demand of foreign traders that a vast territory with a dense population and strategic locality should not remain closed to the industrialized West led to the opening of Shanghai and other ports in China*

The growth of Shanghai

and its attainment of the position of key city in China have been due principally to its geographical location as a port of entry to the great and wealthy Yangtze Valley where almost half of China1^ millions live.

During the

civil wars and foreign Invasions, the two foreign settle­ ments remained undisturbed and came to be islands of safety for the people* Early foreign trade * For a century prior to the opening of Shanghai for foreign trade, Canton had been the chief center of maritime trade with the West in which

Great Britain played the predominating role.

Nevertheless,

trading was not successful, principally due to the fact ;that the commerce was conducted on an unequal basis*

The

British East India Company controlled all the British trade and dominated to a large degree the policies of other foreign traders*1

Friction between the foreign traders

and the Chinese officials was frequent*

The character of

the trade also served to promote conflict*

\

The principal

j j '

Chinese exports were tea and silk, and transactions were mostly paid for by imports of foreign silver*

Toward the

,

i

close of the eighteenth century, however, the difficulty of obtaining silver desired by the Chinese merchants led to 1the gradual introduction of opium as a medium of exchange*

i

In time, the British profited greatly by using opium in ! exchange for tea and silk*

Opium consumption was an evil

to which the Chinese had grave objections.

Its Importation

was forbidden by edict in 1800,2 but the unscrupulousness of foreign traders prevented such enforcement.

Opium,

which is regarded as an unlawful, habit ••forming drug and :outlawed by civilized countries, was smuggled and became lucrative business for higher profits. ----

-----

I I

1 William Crane Johnstone, Jr., The Shanghai Problem (Palo Alto: The Stanford University Press, 1$37T# P* 5* ! I 2 Ibid., p. 6.

By the second quarter of the nineteenth century, Sino-foreign trade relations had reached a critical stage• ' i

The Chinese officials in Canton attempted enforcement of the proclaimed prohibition on the importation of opium* This caused the British to resort to force in order to place their relations with China on a treaty basis.^

The

controversy resulted in a notorious "Opium War" staged

j

between Great Britain and China.

1

In June, 1842, British

troops occupied the walled city of Shanghai; their warships1 had previously bombarded Amoy and Ningpoo and were on their way to Nanking.

A treaty, ending the invasion, defined 4 foreign rights and privileges in China. As a result, the

five ports of Amoy, Canton and Foochow, in southern China, as well as Ningpoo and Shanghai, in central China, were

j

opened for foreign residence and trade.

|

Subsequent

i

treaties signed by the governments of Great Britain, the United States and France between 1842 and 1844 added to the privileges of foreigners in China.

Among their provisions

i

the treaties included: commercial regulations, the establishment of a fixed tariff on imports to China, free- j dom for foreigners from the civil and criminal Jurisdiction! of the Chinese government, and the rights of merchants

3 Ibid., p. 7. _______

Ibid., p. 8 . __

j i 1 I

. to carry on trade in the five open ports.

Cj

Since the

Chinese government was too weak to resist such ever increasing lust, this resulted in the creation of foreign municipalities on Chinese soil, a subject not originally contemplated in the treaties. The establishment of foreign settlements in Shanghai, 1 The

Chinese walled city of Shanghai was located at the

!

(

inner part of the Whangpoo River and was controlled by a ' local official called Tao-Tai.

i

(The pattern of that part

of the city still remains circular today.)

An eastern

j area north of the walled city was negotiated for between the

Britishand Chinese authorities

and

trade. In the latter area the British drew up land

i

for foreign residence

|

regulations and placed residences of all subjects under ! British control.

i A few years later, controversies between | i

; the British and Americansbroke

out and, in 1846, another

j

was assigned to Americans

i

i

i

! area north of the Soochow Creek

as an exclusive concession known as the American Settle** ment (now known as the Hongkew district).

j

Because of the E

location of these two areas, the commercial interests centered there, and the terror of the Tai-Ping rebellion

i I

(known as the Boxer*s Rebellion), an agreement was reached

J Ibid., p. 9.

,

)

between American and British representatives to place both their concessions under international protection; and a

: consolidated governing body, later known as the Shanghai Municipal Council, was formulated•

Rules and regulations

were made placing all the foreign residents under equal rights, but exclusive from the Chinese judiciary power. The establishment of the French Concession.

In

April, 1849, the French consul to Shanghai, M. Charles de Montlgny, who had long desired to have an area separate from that of the British and Americans, demanded of the Chinese Tao-Tai a separate concession for France.

Protests

were raised from both the American and British officials. Nevertheless, the Chinese Tao-Tai was too weak to resist. Negotiations were concluded before the French Minister to 6 China arrived in Shanghai on a French warship. An area south of the International Settlement, and originally consisting of about 140 to 150 acres, was established as the French Concession. Include 2,225 acres.^

It has since been extended to The area was designated to be under

the exclusive control of the French consul.

6 Ibid., p. 21.

;

i

i

i

i !

j

^ China Year Book, 1938 (Shanghai: North China Daily' News and Herald, LidTJ 193$), P • 461.

The establishment of the Greater Shanghai Munici­ pality,

Following the Chinese Revolution which expelled

the Manehu Empire and proclaimed the Republic of China, the status of the foreign settlements remained unchanged. Immediately following the Revolution, various war lords , struggled for power.

i

Numerous wars were staged in various i I

jparts of China and the people around Shanghai found that the foreign settlements, which were under foreign protec: tion, were safe havens in the war-terrorized land. The s population of the foreign settlements increased rapidly.

i 1 i

! In 1926, Marshal Sun Chuan-Fang, a war lord, created the 1

r

'Directorate of the Port of Shanghai and Woosung.

Attempts

,

were made to develop areas surrounding Shanghai's foreign settlements to avoid their further expansion. In 1927> the Nationalists occupied Shanghai.

Under

the Organic Law of July 14, 1927# Shanghai was made a 1Special Municipality under direct control of the Central 1

;Government in Nanking.

The Greater Shanghai Municipality

was officially inaugurated.

The Municipality flanks both

I jforeign municipal areas and contains about 308 square miles ■ 1 1

of territory including the old walled city of Nantao.

j

The Chinese were bending every effort toward the abolition of extraterritoriality In China.

The purpose in

establishing the Greater Shanghai Municipality was that Leventually it would supplant the International Settlement

!

and the French Concession.

Elaborate plans for the crea­

tion of a modern city, including a well planned civic center in Kiangwen and a deep-water harbor east of the International Settlement, were well under way and much of the construction was begun. The Japanese hostilities of 1932 and 1937* The Japanese aggression in Manchuria also extended to Shanghai in 1932 and 1937* causing complete devastation in the Chinese city, and the area in the International Settlement was assigned to Japanese protection*

The resulting

migration of the people into the remaining foreign settle­ ments for protection caused a tremendous increase in population and a critical demand for houses in the latter areas.

The Hongkew district, which was under Japanese

protection, suffered heavy destruction due to the fact that the Japanese forces used that portion of the Inter­ national Settlement as an invasion base against the Chinese Army. The ending of foreign settlements in Shanghai♦

In

December, 1942, the day after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Army and Navy forces marched into the remainder of the International Settlement and took over the city, leaving the French Concession unmolested.

A few :

11

months later, negotiations between the Japanese authorities and the Nanking puppet government culminated in an agree­ ment to place the entire city under Japanese military protection and under Chinese political control.

Although

'

the French consul and his troops claimed loyalty to their

i

Nazi-sponsored Vichy government, they were physically too I

( weak to resist such a demand based on the principles of

j

1 the "Greater Asia Co-prosperity Sphere® and backed by the i powerful Japanese military display at that time.

1 I I

Hence, it was the first time in history since 1842, j ! that the city of Shanghai was placed under the sole control1 i of one authority. The situation after 1942. i

During the period of the

Japanese occupation, from 1942 to 1945# the population of

i

i Shanghai increased continuously because of the instability ; and lack of proper protection in the rural areas.

i

People

from the rural areas and even from other cities either

i

i

i

moved to inland Free China or to Shanghai, the latter being: t

a safe place in which to reside and a prosperous city in which to conduct business. within the flame of war*

Shanghai became a paradise

t

Population increase was but an

t inevitable tendency. ;

The situation in Shanghai after World War II.

After

L V-J day in _1945,_the_Nationalis_t government took over the

;

12

entire city.

Agreements were reached between the Chinese

government and the Allied powers that the latter would

!

give up extraterritorial rights and would respect Chinese

i

sovereignty. promising.

i

The situation in Shanghai at that time seemed The bulk of the Japanese property, including

real estate and industries, were transferred to the ! Chinese government as partial payment for war damages.

In

i

i j

the meantime, negotiations were conducted between the

i

Nationalist government and the Chinese Communist Party for ! 1the purpose of forming a coalition government with the United States acting as mediator.

!

Unfortunately, the task

failed and it led to civil war. The Shanghai City Government was unable to do any !constructive work in the face of currency inflation and the ;

l

unfavorable political situation.

By 19^7* after the

!

:Communist Army scored a decisive victory in Manchuria, it took only one year for the Communist troops to drive from the extreme north of Manchuria down to the extreme south of Canton.

| i Shanghai was occupied by the Communist troops in

early May, 19^9.

No damage was done to the urban area.

The city of Shanghai was spared from devastation by the i peaceful change in governments. 5 It is noteworthy from the planning point of view i |that Shanghai, because of its past development and growth * Iunder separate municipalities, had never been able to______

i I i ' i j

achieve a total planning agency working toward the benefit of the city as a whole.

CHAPTER III THE EXISTING SHANGHAI I.

SHANGHAI TODAY

The Greater Shanghai Municipality today covers an area of 893*16 square kilometers.

Although the area is

located in Kiangsu Province, Shanghai is a "Special Municipality” directly under the control of the Central Government.

The city is bounded on the east by ChuenSha

Hsien* and NanWei Hsien, on the west by KlangTing Hsien, TsingPoo Hsien and SungKiang Hsien, on the north by PooShan Hsien and the Yangtze River, and on the south by NanWei Hsien.

The city area and its geographic location can be

observed from Tables I and II. Although the Greater Shanghai Municipality covers such a vast area (approximately 220,612 acres), almost 70 per cent of the population resides in the former Inter­ national Settlement and the former French Concession with an area of not more than 1 5 ,0 0 0 acres (12.28 square miles). The rest remains rural or undeveloped.

Small towns and

villages have formed within these rural areas.

* Hsien is equivalent to a county. composed of a number of Hsiens.

These,

A province is

TABLE I AREA BREAKDOWNS IN THE GREATER SHANGHAI MUNICIPALITY*

Area Per cent

Mow

Sq. LI

1 ,008,133

2,593.06

860.34

95.72

Former International Settlement

3 3 ,5 0 3

6 2 .1 2

2 2 .6 0

2.95

Former French Concession

15,15 0

30.80

10.22

1.33

1 ,136,766

2,691.98

893.16

100.00

Name of districts Former Chinese Municipality

Total area

Sq. Km.

♦China Year Book, 1935-36 (Shanghai: North China Daily News and Herald, Ltd., 19367, p. 1659.

I

TABLE II POSITIONS OP VARIOUS DISTRICTS AND THEIR HEIGHTS ABOVE SEA LEVEL IN THE GREATER SHANGHAI MUNICIPALITY* Name of districts

Longitude

Latitude

Height

Former Chinese Municipality

121 201 to 121

Ex^International Settlement

121 2 6 * to 121 331

31 13 1/21 to 31 16 1/21

n

Former French Concession

121 2 6 * to 121 27*

31 12* to 31 13 1/2*

*»

371

31 09* to 31 24*

Approximately 12*5 H.W.H.Z.

i*Chlna Year Book, 1935-36 (Shanghai: North China Dally News and Herald, Ltd., 11936), p. 1656.

however, have less significance in the entire picture because of inadequate utilities and poor building construction.

Nevertheless, these rural areas may contrib­

ute something of great value in the future redevelopment of the city* In analyzing the city of Shanghai, it is necessary to emphasize the study of the urban areas because of the I ;

nature of the city’s population and physical development. The public utilities, except for the Shanghai Transit lines, are owned and operated by private enterprises.

Each

still operates independently within the area of the old international Jurisdictions from which they originally obtained their franchises prior to 19*1-2.

Cooperation

between these public utilities today is, as a matter of fact, limited.

For example, there are four individual

water works supplying water for the one city.

This fani

tastlc situation, as can be readily seen, creates difficulties and inconveniences In many Instances.

However,,

because of its peculiar political development during the

1 (

past century, Shanghai has not yet been able to achieve a unified utility system. It Is also important to note that the general city pattern for buildings is composed of terrace houses. Except for homes in some of the "high class11 residential areas in the, we stem_ section_of„the__city_ and various bank

18 buildings, hotels, office buildings, department stores and theatres in the central district, the entire urban area is composed of block after block of terrace houses• A : considerable number of these terrace houses, because of the ever-increasing population during the past thirty years,

j

have been converted into elementary schools, shops and f small-scale industries, mingled together with those still

i i |

;

t

occupied as homes.

Circumstantial limitations Inherent

in this situation have held down to a minimum the estab*

i

, lishment and enforcement of proper zoning ordinances. ; Consequently, this constitutes an ultimate problem of i

difficulty for the city government to solve in the conduct i

of a successful educational, medical and social welfare ; program.

i

i

| !

The Ex-International Settlement.

; The former Inter- ;

national Settlement covers an area of 8.79 square miles.

j

In general, this area contains most of the commercial Interests of the entire city.

i I The present city government,|

the regional business district, and most of the industries j ! are located in this area. Wharves and pontoons used by i ocean-going vessels and large river steamers are situated ;mostly along its six-mile river front.

Neither of the

i railways which have terminals at Shanghai enters this area, i

but the Shanghai North Station (the terminal for the

i

i

Nanking-^Shanghai Railway and the Shanghai-Hangchow-Ningpoo , Railway) is adjacent to it on the north side of the Soochow Creek• ,

1 On the whole, the street pattern is irregular and

i

the major streets run in a general east-west direction perpendicular to the Whangpoo River.

The minor streets »

run perpendicular to the Soochow Creek, thus forming an iirregular gridiron street pattern.

i

Two main roads running

-

i !

!

:across the city east and west are Nanking Road-Bubbling Well Road-Yu Yuan Road, in the center, and Ave. Edward VII!Ave. Foch-Great Western Road, on the south, along the edge ■of the former French Concession.

The minor streets

bisecting these two main arteries at intervals are Sechuen Road, Yu Ya Ching Road (Tibet Road), Yates Road and Semore Road.


21 a certain extent to the traffic congestion in this area. The Bubbling Well District.

The commercial

interests in this district are mainly concentrated along the Bubbling Well Road.

The Shanghai Race Course, situated;

along Yu Ya Ching Road, divides this area from the Central ; District.

Streets in this area run between wider blocks.

The western section of this district is occupied by well

|

developed residential sections with sufficient open spaces. The houses here, as in the rest of the city, are pre­ dominantly in the terrace pattern.

There are not as many

i i

commercial activities in this area, except for those along Bubbling Well Road and the blocks between Yates Road and Semore Road.

i

There are a number of schools, both

elementary and high schools, at various locations in this

j

area but they lack proper premises and recreational fields.!The Hongkew and Yantzepoo District.

The area north I

of Soochow Creek is defined as the Hongkew and Yangtzepoo District.

The irregular street pattern here follows the

Whangpoo River in a northeasterly direction.

| ! !

A portion of

this district is on the north, thus producing a triangular area.

The main roads in the northeast portion are

North Broadway Road and Seward Road running parallel with the Whangpoo River from the Bund to the eastern area called1 i

Yangtzepoo.

North Szechuen Road, which is the continuation1

22 of Szechuen Road from the Central District, runs northward to Hongkew Park,

The majority of the businesses, consist- ,

ing principally of shipping and warehousing, are conducted along North Broadway Road and Seward Road.

Along the bank

of the Whangpoo River are wharves built for ocean-going vessels.

However, there is no direct railway connection

1with these shipping facilities.

On the northwest side of

j i

-

this district lies the Shanghai North Station, which carries railroad transportation to Nanking and Hangchow, t

respectively. The majority of population in this area is j in the low income bracket; they are mostly manual workers or those who work for shipping and warehousing enterprises. On the northeast lies the Yangtzepoo section of this district#

The Yangtzepoo section is an industrial district.

Large factories, such as textile mills, tobacco factories, i , dockyards, paper factories and flour mills, together with such public utilities as the Shanghai Power Company and the; Shanghai Water Works, are in this area.

Between these

| i

factories are found terrace houses where most of the ^ i workers reside. This area is comparatively well developed | due to the fact that certain improvements were made by the ( !

factories.

i

During the Japanese hostilities in 1937# this ; portion of the city was heavily damaged.

|

This section has ! -f

i — no.t ye t_.recovered_from„the_ .destruction,caused. by_thls_ war., j

Future redevelopment in this area will provide better opportunity and less resistance. The Wu Chung District,

North of the Bubbling Well

District, and bounded on the south by Soochow Creek, is the Wu Chung District,

This area may be rated as under**

developed in comparison with the rest of the city.

The

houses along Soochow Creek are poorly constructed and many of them are plain mud huts. to this district.

Less attention has been given

The streets are found to be inadequate

both in construction and standard.

Some factories, such

as silk factories and chemical works, are in this area. The population here is relatively dense.

In this district

numerous "slum” spots exist, and these afford a greater opportunity for improvement in future development plans. The Ex-French Concession. The former French Con­ cession is located south of the former International Settlement north of the old walled city.

The general

street pattern here is similar to that of the old Inter­ national Settlement.

Ave, Edward VII-Ave. Foch serves as

the dividing line between these two areas.

Along the

French Bund there is about three fourths of a mile of waterfront occupied by wharves which are only suitable for accommodating river steamers.

The old French Concession

2k

is known for its residential developments, yet these are limited only to the western section of this area.

Modern

: apartment houses, together with fine private residences, offer a striking contrast to homes in the rest of the area which are again composed of terrace houses.

Two main

roads running across this portion of the city are Boulevard des Deux Republiques-Ave. Joffre and Ave. Lafay­ i

ette.

Minor streets which connect with the streets from

\the old International Settlement provide convenient links iin the road system between the two areas. i

The Central District.

The central district of the

former French Concession is subordinate to the adjacent central district of the former International Settlement. \

IMost of the French banks, shipping companies and other i :business concerns are located in this district. Traffic i i 'congestion is not as serious here as in comparison with 1that in the adjacent International Settlement central district.

Along Boulevard des Deux Republique are arcades

built over the sidewalks, an idea introduced by the French during the early days of the development of this district. Streets in this area are narrow.

Efforts have been made to

widen them but no significant result has yet been achieved. The Joffre District.

The area west of the old

25 1French Concessions central district, up to the junction at Ave* Petain and Ave* Joffre and bounded by Ave. Sayzoong, i

is the Joffre District.

Stores and various shops are to

. be found along Ave. Joffre.

Centers are formed in the

middle section of Ave. Joffre between Ave. Dubail and Rue

i

;du Roi Albert (equivalent to the distances between Yates ’Road and Semore Road in the former International Settle! ment). Well built apartment and semi-detached houses are

i

j t ! i

, found among the usual terrace houses. comparatively well developed.

This area is

(

The central section of this 1

i area is well known to the people of Shanghai as the Russian sector; hundreds of White Russians, who fled from their country after the Russian revolution, gradually drifted I down from Harbin and Peking and took up their residence ! 3 :here. There are a number of elementary and high schools

!

; in this sector, but unfortunately most of them lack proper i : i lpremises. j

The Petain District.

The Petain District in the

former French Concession is one of the finest residential districts in Shanghai. Fashionable dwellings and well t developed apartment houses compose a general pattern of

I i

3

William Crane Johnstone, Jr., The Shanghai Problem (Palo Alto: The Stanford University Press, 1937;* P. 99.

26 land use In this area.

Shopping facilities are well

' located and controlled.

Terrace houses are rare*

criticism is that it lacks a feeling of unity.

: t

The only

Most of the

foreign residents live in this district. i

The Greater Shanghai Municipality.

The idea of

establishing a Municipality of Greater Shanghai originated , i ! with Marshal Sun Chuan-Fang, who in 1926 created the 4 Directorate of the Port of Shanghai and Woosung. The !

Greater Shanghai Municipality, which embraces the area

! I

formerly included in the two neighbouring Hsiens, completely surrounds the foreign settlement areas

and has 1

a total area of 860*34 square kilometers, distributed

on

j i

both sides of the Whangpoo River. i The fact that foreigners have long alleged that the . j

Chinese were incapable of developing a modern municipality i

; which would compare favorably with their own has been an |

1

i

1

! important factor in the projection of plans for the future 1

city of Greater Shanghai.

The Chinese city authorities

I

; were confident that if these plans were completed, the !

foreign areas would be absorbed into this large municipal- ! '

1

I ity.

i

^ China Year Book, 1935-36 (Shanghai: North China Daily News and Herald, £td., 193^)» P. 1660*

t

27 The plan for the Greater Shanghai Municipality called for the development of the area north and east of the former International Settlement which stretches out as far as Woosung,

A new industrial district along the water­

front equipped with wharves for ocean-going ships has been mapped out*

A deep-water harbor was built east of the

new civic center adjacent to the industrial area.

Railways

would connect with the harbor which provides direct connection with the land and water transportation.

The

harbor itself covers a river frontage of 1,400 meters.

An

extensive freeway system, radiating from the civic center and linking up with the foreign areas, has been prepared. Land subdivision plans were laid out and leases given to those who intended to respond to the development projects. The city government, under the capable leadership of Mayor Wu Tl-Chuen, decided to move the city government to the proposed civic center as the first step in promoting the project.

The new civic center, consisting of a city hall,

library, museum, health center, aeronautic center and a large stadium, has been constructed.

The construction of

this new civic center was completed in a significantly short length of time.

All the buildings were of modernized:

Chinese architecture.

With the effort of the city govern­

ment and the overwhelming support from the people, the

28 proposed project got well under way.

It was best described

I

by Johnstone as follows: In spite of all these handicaps, most observers on Shanghai are agreed that in the short period of about eight years the Chinese have made notable advances in the conduct of a modern municipal government. Residents of the Chinese municipal area have profited by better police protection, better health protection, and improved public services and transportation facilities. . . . The development of the Chinese Municipality of Greater Shanghai has progressed beyond what many foreigners believed possible. 5 Unfortunately, in 1937# while much of the construction was in progress, the Japanese hostilities broke out.

It not

only held up the execution of the project but also destroyed most of the buildings in the new civic center area.

The creation of the Greater Shanghai Municipality

was principally due to the political implications at that time when foreign powers were dominating the city in every way.

The political situation has changed since 19^5 and

the city Is now under the Chinese control, including the areas covered by the former International Settlement and the French Concession.

It left in doubt the value of the

continuation of such a project which had its civic center located outside the urban area.

Some of the propositions

in that scheme, however, would certainly be of great value i

^ Johnstone, op. clt., p. 127.

29 in reference to the future development of Shanghai,

II.

HOUSING CONDITIONS IN SHANGHAI

Housing is a world-wide problem today. cularly a critical one in Shanghai.

It is parti­

For years the local

1

authorities have tried vainly to solve this problem.

j

Nevertheless, due to the continuously unstable political

J

and economic situation, the city was forced to bring its development projects to a standstill while at the same time it faced the rampage of a steady increase in population. In 1938 the Commissioner of Public Works of the Shanghai Municipal Council made the following statement: The poorest people of this country, through age­ long poverty and hardship have become inured to a condition of living, which, in some countries, would be thought insupportable. Overcrowding, however, is not confined to the poorest classes, not to habita­ tion, but is a vast social economical problem which can only be solved gradually by its people. As far as Shanghai is concerned, serious overcrowding is a permanent and widespread condition from Hongkew Park to the South Station and from Yangtzepoo to Ave. Haig. Political disturbances in the past have often led to an influx of refugees. It Is inevitable that at such times new standards of overcrowding are established more or less permanently, and from general observation it would appear that overcrowd­ ing had Increased in the past decade. Actually it is overcrowding in the first instance that makes high rents possible and it is because of overcrowd­ ing and the consequent high rents which have been possible with but a trivial addition to the cost of the construction of buildings, that capitalization of the increased net rentals goes on to the land

j

and creates^a high land value that is difficult to break down.® How true these words were was to be tragically demonstrated' during the consecutive Japanese hostilities and the civil wars.

In 1948, when the population of the city reached

: the 5,000,000 mark,

Shanghai experienced one of the worst j

overcrowding conditions in its history. Evidences of overcrowding.

In 1935# the census

of |

; the Shanghai Municipal Council showed that in the most i densely populated police district there were 547 persons per acre.

I j

More than 300 persons per acre were found among :

the rest of the nineteen police districts.^ Moreover, a non-scientific but very revealing method of comparison is to note the average number of persons and I families per house.

Even though the size of the houses

i may vary, there is basically a certain uniformity in the terrace houses which predominate in Shanghai.

In 1933

4l,l6o houses were counted by the Police Department in ; which 113,286 families were found in the most congested I !

.

-

^

Shanghai Municipal Council Reports, 1937-1933 ■ (Shanghai: NorthChina Daily New3 and Herald, Ltd., 1939)> 1 p. 444. 1 i 7 Eleanor M. Hinder, Social and Industrial Problems ; Shanghai (New York: International &eere tariat, i Institute of Pacific Relations, 1942), p. 42. 1

areas.

Out of 41,160 houses counted, 22,764 houses were Q found to have four families per house. The average number' of persons per family, according to the Social and Industrial Division of the Shanghai Municipal Council, was 4.6.9

prom these figures it can be seen that a single

terrace house may house as many as twenty-four inhabitants. :

i

i In the summer of 1938, a year after the outbreak of i i ; the Japanese hostilities, the census showed that the 1 average laborer*s family consisted of 5.81 persons and the i average number of families per house was 7*22. ! time there were almost forty Prom thattimeafter,

persons in a single

thepopulation

At that house.

increasedsteadily.

!

It was not uncommon to find such an unbelievable state of : congestion that more than fifty persons per house were to t

i be counted in some of the extremely overpopulated areas.

»

1 The terrace houses. The basic pattern of housing in 1■ i ! Shanghai Is composed of row after row of terraced twoi

story buildings.

(See Figure 1.)

The rows are separated

i I

; by paved alleyways. These alleyways give access to the i ! entrances of one row of houses on one side and also act i ; | as service entrances for the back doors on the other side. D Ibid., p. 43. 9 Ibid., p. 44.

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The main alleyways in the project are accessed to the sidewalk on the street. The so-called "terrace houses" represent a recognized type of building in which the frame is made of native Foochow poles or imported Oregon pine.

Each floor measures

from twelve to fourteen feet in height.

The average width ! ! of the houses is fourteen feet. The depth of the building, j i between the edge of the alleyways, varies from twenty-four j to forty feet.

There is usually a front yard of about six ' i to eight feet in depth. i The house itself contains a single front room

\

(combination living and dining room) and a kitchen towards the rear.

A staircase is usually located between the front'

room and the kitchen, leading to two rooms above on the first floor.

A mezzanine floor, which is above the kitchen;

and of the same size, is provided for multiple purposes. The top of this mezzanine floor is covered with concrete slabs, providing a drying deck for laundries.

i

Two of these,

units share a bearing wall which sticks out above the roof and also serves as a fireproof partition.

There may or may! ! not be a water closet, whereas most of the houses ; i

constructed during the recent years do provide such

| !

facilities.

A typical floor plan is shown in Figure 2.

block of these row terrace houses comprises a small

A

P /p . 2 .

/

T O P IC A L

/e >e

"1

c

T£#R 4c£

£=

P l4 * t

Afi/ir/-Pl/FFO^F pa/.

1■1■E

A / J P* 247.

built-up urban areas, it calls for redevelopment and !improvements.

In rural areas, it calls for open develop­

ment resulting from the decentralisation.

(See Figure 3*)

The proposed master plan is presented in the following way: 1.

Indication of land uses:

location of regional

;center, industrial areas, residential communities, open spaces and parks, and agricultural land. 2.

Indication of arrangement of regional circula-

i tion system: