A Taipei resident on Friday found his home knocked down after returning from a meeting at the Taipei Urban Regeneration Office to discuss an urban renewal project for the building in which he had been living.
The man, surnamed Chang (張), a holdout in the project, said he returned to what would have been his home on Changan W Road at about noon, following a meeting with representatives of project contractor SWJ Construction Co (欣偉傑建設).
Chang, who lived on the fourth floor, said the building had collapsed and accused SWJ of tearing down his home.
Photo: CNA
Chang said that after he left the meeting, in which the two sides failed to reach an agreement, he was hit by a scooter and had to go to a police station to give an account of the accident, which he said was a ploy by the firm to stall him.
SWJ president Cheng Ko-shi (鄭可熙) said the company did not mean to tear down Chang’s home, but only the first three floors, whose owners had agreed to the renewal project.
Chang demanded NT$120 million (US$3.87 million) to vacate the building, which was far higher than what the home was worth, he said.
Photo: CNA
The firm is willing to pay Chang about NT$30 million, Cheng added.
He said the company in June last year had been granted a demolition permit from the office, as 98 percent of homeowners in the area agreed to the urban renewal project.
Chang denied Cheng’s claim, saying he had priced his home higher than its market value as a bargaining tactic.
Chang’s lawyer said he would file a suit against the firm for trespassing and causing damage.
The office said the demolition was legal, as SWJ had obtained construction and demolition permits according to Article 34 of the Urban Renewal Act (都市更新條例).
Office chief engineer Chang Li-li (張立立) said the office had no prior knowledge of the demolition, which he said was “regrettable.”
He said the company should have ensured that sufficient communication had taken place before it tore the building down.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said the city government’s role in private urban renewal projects is to issue demolition permits in accordance with the law.
The way SWJ tore down Chang’s home is controversial, he said, adding that he had instructed the Taipei Department of Urban Development to redouble efforts to publicly explain the procedure for urban renewal projects.
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
GEOPOLITICAL CONCERNS: Foreign companies such as Nissan, Volkswagen and Konica Minolta have pulled back their operations in China this year Foreign companies pulled more money from China last quarter, a sign that some investors are still pessimistic even as Beijing rolls out stimulus measures aimed at stabilizing growth. China’s direct investment liabilities in its balance of payments dropped US$8.1 billion in the third quarter, data released by the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed on Friday. The gauge, which measures foreign direct investment (FDI) in China, was down almost US$13 billion for the first nine months of the year. Foreign investment into China has slumped in the past three years after hitting a record in 2021, a casualty of geopolitical tensions,
RSS