Rebirth of Gusu Old House
On August 5, the Wu House at Fanmen Bridge Lane, Gusu District, Suzhou City, which was built in the Qing Dynasty, started the evaluation process for expropriated houses.
After relocating the residents, the Suzhou Municipal Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau of Jiangsu Province will first protect and repair them to renew their old houses in accordance with the spirit of urban renewal, and then optimize the business formats for activation and utilization.
As historical buildings, the residences and private gardens of celebrities of the past dynasties scattered inside and outside Gusu City contain the genetic code of the city's ancient cultural context and architectural art.
As the years passed, some of the old houses fell into disrepair and the gates were left in the cold.
Funds, property rights and other "blockers" that lie on the way to the protection of old houses have not hindered the local government and folks with unique feelings for traditional culture. Suzhou has formed a pattern of multi-subject restoration and protection of historical and ancient buildings.
Various forces participated in the protection of old houses and the organic renewal of the city, retaining the memory of the ancient city for future generations and recreating the elegance of Jiangnan culture.
The revival of an old mansion in the Ming Dynasty
The old houses in Gusu City are mostly hidden in the downtown area, while the old houses in the east and west mountains of Taihu Lake are hidden deep in ancient villages.
The ancient village of Luxiang, Dongshan Town, which is backed by mountains and rivers, was the hometown of Wang Huan, the cabinet minister during the Zhengde period of the Ming Dynasty. There are more than 30 Ming and Qing ancient buildings preserved in the village.
Huilaotang is a medium-sized building in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Luxiang Ancient Village.
The gate faces east, and the three characters "Hui Lao Tang" are engraved on the upper side of Shikumen, which is simple and unassuming.
Crossing a general gate, a courtyard with a cave in the sky suddenly appeared in front of him.
Stopping under the corridor between the stage and Xiaoxuan, a deep feeling of the courtyard emerges spontaneously.
In the summer of 2003, when Xing Weiying from Shanghai met Hui Lao Tang for the first time, its main building was tilted to the southeast, the roof was hovering, and the floor was rotten.
It was so difficult to repair an old house in Ming Dynasty that was about to collapse.
In the autumn of 2003, Xing Weiying walked into the Wuzhong District Housing Management Bureau to copy the building structure drawings of the old hall, and invited Suzhou ancient building protection experts to investigate and check the details of the restoration.
The Taihu Ancient Architecture Survey and Design Institute followed the principle of "repair the old as the old" and formulated a restoration plan for the Hui Lao Hall, listing 19 restoration points.
The rescue repair took 3 years.
In 2006, a boutique antique hotel transformed from Hui Lao Tang appeared in front of the world.
After a field visit to the old hall, Ruan Yisan, director of the National Historical and Cultural City Research Center of Tongji University, lamented that it is not easy for an ancient building to be restored in such an original way on the original site of the thousand-year-old town.
Hui Lao Tang is undoubtedly a model for the rebirth of old houses, and a successful case of private capital intervening in the protection of old houses.
However, in the process of protection and restoration of ancient buildings, the intervention of social capital and the establishment of a market-oriented operation model are far from simple as imagined.
What capital values is return, and property rights and benefits must be clear. Ancient buildings have the value of cultural relics and are a non-renewable social resource. How to better protect and inherit is the primary task.
"Behind the property rights and benefits, more should be responsibilities and obligations." Xing Weiying believes.
As a boutique hotel, the club must first consider economic benefits, but Xing Weiying requested that the occupancy rate of the club be controlled at about 25%.
She sold the old house in Shanghai and used it for the salvage restoration of the old hall. The current sales revenue and operating expenses of the hotel have reached a basic balance.
"The involvement of private capital in the protection of ancient buildings is basically people who have a special liking for traditional culture." Shao Hairong, director of the ancient village office of Dongshan Town, said that it was not out of love and could not continue.
There are more than 300 ancient buildings in Dongshan Town, Wuzhong District, Suzhou City, where the Old Church is located.
Among the 365 groups of traditional buildings announced by Jiangsu Province for the first time in December 2020, Dongshan has 27 on the list.
These ancient buildings are not only local resources, but also a sweet "burden".
Since 2006, Wuzhong District has set up an annual incentive fund for the protection of ancient villages and ancient buildings of 3 million yuan, which has been adjusted to 15 million yuan since 2016. The units and individuals that implement the protection of ancient villages and ancient buildings will be granted loan discounts and subsidies.
By the end of 2020, more than 100 maintenance projects have been rewarded and subsidized, attracting social capital investment exceeding 100 million yuan.
"Just ask for where, don't ask for everything" has become a consensus
On July 7th, the new book sharing session of "The Return of Man Ting Fang Fei Yan-Re-realistic Records of Gusu's Old Mansion" was held in Suzhou.
"If Suzhou gardens are always a treasure in our hearts, then these old houses are friends and relatives who are always attached to us. The treasure is of course extremely precious, but after all, it is a little far away, friends and relatives. It is a relationship that makes us even more unable to let go and worry more about.” Fan Xiaoqing, honorary chairman of the Jiangsu Writers Association, said in the preface.
The book "The Return of Man Ting Fang Fei Yan" always emphasizes the diversified ways of protection and restoration of old houses. The book contains 36 successful cases of protection and renewal of old houses, which provides a reference for the restoration and utilization of more Gusu old houses in the future.
Chen Biao, the executive editor of the book and deputy investigator of the Suzhou Municipal Bureau of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, told the reporter that the Suzhou Municipal Finance Bureau allocates sufficient funds to the Municipal Housing and Urban-rural Development Bureau to directly manage the repair of public housing in accordance with the repair plan and capital budget every year to ensure that it directly manages the ancient buildings in the public housing. Be properly repaired and protected.
In 2020, the Suzhou Municipal Bureau of Housing and Urban-rural Development found that the three old houses of Fanmen Bridge Lane Wu’s House, Cangqiao Bang Deng’s House, and Xiaocao’s House of the Republic of China were in urgent need of rescue repairs. More than 5,000 square meters.
This year, this big project was included in the Suzhou City's fiscal budget, totaling 180 million yuan.
After the repairs, these ancient houses will be leased, sold, etc., to revitalize the funds, so that the restoration and protection of the ancient houses can be promoted sustainably.
The property rights of the old houses can be transferred because the old houses in Suzhou City are mainly state-owned and the property rights relationship is clear.
For more than ten years, Suzhou Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau has rented out more than 40 old houses after repairs, and more than 30 old houses under the name of the funded social forces after the property rights have been processed. A lot of experience has formed a virtuous circle.
"Just ask for whereabouts, not for everything", encouraging many social forces to enter the field of ancient building protection has become the consensus of all circles in Suzhou.
However, the old houses on the east and west mountains beside the Taihu Lake belong to farmers’ homesteads. They cannot be transferred in accordance with relevant national regulations, which has become a bottleneck restricting the participation of social forces in protection.
When I came to the ancient village of Tangli in the northwest of Xishan Island, the wall of Rongdetang in front of me collapsed, the rafters rotted, and the broken tiles were covered with thatch.
This is a Qing dynasty building with two signs "Historic Building" and "Conservation Building" issued by the Suzhou Municipal Government more than ten years ago on the outer wall.
"The east and west mountains are all such old houses, which urgently need salvage repairs," said Zou Yongming, director of the Jinting Town Cultural and Sports Center.
The town plans to repair more than ten ancient buildings every year, and Rongdetang is included in one of the 13 Xishan ancient building repair plans in 2022.
How to increase the enthusiasm of private capital and private property owners of ancient buildings to protect ancient buildings?
Zou Yongming is optimistic about the "Suzhou Taihu Ecological Island Regulations" that has just been promulgated.
It stipulates that the reward range of social forces for repairing ancient buildings will be increased from 30% of the original financial contribution of Wuzhong District to 50% of the current Suzhou municipal financial contribution.
With the advancement of the construction of Suzhou's "City of Hundred Gardens" and the increase in the rewards of municipal finance for private capital repairs, more and more private capital has turned its attention to old houses.
Fair use is the best protection
How to find a balance between protection and utilization is a difficult problem for users of ancient buildings.
Many old houses are repaired and they will be "the iron general keep the door", and the air will be closed. This is certainly not a good way to protect them-no one, no fireworks, and the house will age faster.
At present, there are many different ways for the activation and utilization of ancient buildings.
On February 19 this year, Gusu District issued the "White Paper on the Activation and Utilization of Old Buildings and Old Houses", focusing on the introduction of 18 old houses and courtyards managed by state-owned enterprises in the district, with a view to attracting outstanding businesses to enter the ancient city of Gusu and old houses.
Meng Qiang, curator of the Suzhou Brick Sculpture Museum, understands that the activation and utilization of ancient buildings is that with the development of the city, more ancient buildings must have their souls, and the old spaces must be reorganized with modern styles and concepts to make them younger and younger at the moment. Fashionable, can be reused with quality of life.
In the book "Qinglianshanfang" by Chen Jiru of the Ming Dynasty, it said: "The master is not vulgar, and you can see Wenxin when you build a garden." Pushing open the wooden door of the West Flower Hall of Wang Huan's former residence, the flower street floor is covered with the entire small courtyard, and the ceiling of the flower basket hall. The intricately carved boat canopy Xuan echoes each other.
Thirteen years ago, Meng Qiang rented the East Flower Hall and West Flower Hall of Wang Hua's former residence in Xueshi Street from the Public Housing Management Office of the Suzhou Housing and Urban-rural Development Bureau.
The East Flower Hall is used as the Suzhou Brick Sculpture Museum, which collects the most exquisite Soviet-style brick sculptures of various dynasties in China.
The West Flower Hall was not renovated until May of this year and used as a venue for small collections, new book or film releases.
Reasonable use is the best protection.
On the basis of ensuring the integrity of old houses, Suzhou tends to integrate old houses with cultural industries, integrating them into modern life with a new look, and rejuvenating them with vitality.
The development and utilization of the "Pan House" Auditorium in front of Wei Taoist Temple focuses on the "Su-style life". The elegant space introduces cultural and creative brands such as "Suzhou Good Scenery", "First Seeing Study Room", and "Gengfeng Tea House". .
The Rongchuntang at Cuifeng Dock, Wengxiang Ancient Village, Dongshan Town, was acquired and repaired by Suzhou Cultural Tourism Group, and then teamed up with a domestic boutique hotel brand to create a creative space integrating boutique hotels, traditional cultural dissemination, and study tours.
Recently, the revitalization and utilization of Gusu old houses has a more open mind. It is no longer limited to the old houses themselves, but combines the protection of old houses with urban micro-renovation.
Fang Jie is the person in charge of a commercial company engaged in the transformation of urban cultural projects.
The old house located on the foundation of the Suzhou Shantang Historic District will be re-launched as a stylish dining bar and living aesthetic space with Suzhou characteristics.
The specific way of presentation is to design and customize a cruise ship to create a "floating garden" on the Shantang River, echoing the old house on the river pillow.
"Through the carrier, not only the building can be activated, but also many time-honored brands can be activated," Fang Jie said.
The bar will make a co-branded cocktail with Shazhou Youhuang, and co-launch Biluochun milk tea with Sanwanchang. All drinking water in the restaurant and bar will use Dongtingshan brand mineral water, and the tapestry craftsmanship on the tablecloth-the core of the house has not been changed. , But the interaction between traditional culture and young people is the secret of the activation and utilization of old houses.
The old house in the south of the Yangtze River is the most elegant in Suzhou.
There was a "think tank" in the ancient Suzhou man-made garden, and Wen Zhengming participated in the design and transformation of the Humble Administrator's Garden.
Nowadays, the vast old houses in the ancient city urgently need more people of insight to come and get together.
Flicking away the dust of the years, more touching stories will be intertwined between the old house and the city, blooming its light belonging to this era.
(Reporter Su Yan)