Transitional spaces combined with functions in low-rent housing for rural-to-urban migrants (Nongmin gong) in China : analysis of 3 case studies based upon communal Activities

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study investigates planning strategies regarding low-rent housing for Chinese rural-to-urban migrants (Nongmin gong) through an examination of the intermediary spaces combined with functions shared among such Chinese migrants in their urban settlements. Such functions are to help rural migrants with the process of managing their spatial transition from the rural setting to the urban setting. Chinese migrants gradually transfer from their home rural settlements to establish city lives and engage in urban occupations, but their sense of identity and family network remain grounded in a village culture. The high level of communal activities found in the spontaneous urban settlements of Nongmin gong, can be understood as one aspect of the adherence to the lifestyle of their rural settlements.

As a result, the main focus of this study is to show that the sharing of certain functions situated in the transitional spaces, namely, in front of the rental room, in front of the rental house and between the rental houses, always provides opportunities for communal activities to take place. This research reveals that low-rent neighborhoods spontaneously-developed by migrants incorporates close-knit communal activities that take place in these transitional spaces. Under the same physical conditions, by contrast, communal activities have been disappearing in modern low-rent high-rise neighborhoods. Based on the analyses of the physical characteristics of the activities carried out by migrant residents and of the interviews of migrants regarding the significance of communal activities, I defend the thesis that the role played by the transitional spaces must be joined with functions that residents can share or must share with each other. The shared functions situated in the transitional spaces actually allow communal activities to take root.

In my dissertation, communal activities taking place in the transitional spaces are investigated based on three typical low-rent migrant neighborhoods: Yimuyuan stands as a spontaneously-developed neighborhood of Nongmin Gong or rural-to-urban migrants in Beijing city; Minxin Jiayuan is a government-subsidized low-rent neighborhood in Chongqing city; and Vanke Tulou is an example of private developer-built low-rent housing, in Guangzhou city. For each case study, communal activities are assessed by examining the spatial characteristics of three transitional spaces and through a survey of a sample of forty-five rural-to-urban migrant residents. While questionnaire surveys were also used for data gathering, we could identify descriptive statistics used for comparative analyses of the three low-rent neighborhoods.

Analysis of the migrants’spontaneously-developed housing in the Yimuyuan case suggests two points. Firstly, the high level of communal activities occurring in the three transitional spaces mostly appertains to residents using the shared functions. These functions become a given condition that residents can share with other residents. Secondly, all these shared functions provide a medium by which communal activities are actualized. The available shared functions help to build up the relationship of residents to the functions of their choice, and also make it possible to generate communal activities among residents.

Therefore, the results of this study lead to the following finding about low-rent neighborhoods for rural-to-urban migrants: Housing typology (low-rise or high-rise) is not fundamental in influencing relations between neighbors and certainly not the real cause of a high or low level of communal activities. If low-rent neighborhoods are rich in communal activities, this is not because they are crowded or are more suitable places, but because they have sufficient functions to allow that sharing to take place. The same can be applied to places which have few communal activities, it is not resulting from a lack of people or open places, but it is caused by the absence of functions that can be shared, thereby preventing the occurrence of communal activities.

Finally, this research proposes strategies using shared functions for planning rural-to-urban migrants’ low-rent housing in China. Regarding the strategies using shared functions, the following shared functions comprise the basis for designing low-rent housing for rural-to-urban migrants in China: hygiene and sanitary functions; cooking and dining functions; storage and rest functions; social service and education functions; and recreation and hobby functions. This kind of low-rent housing model, based on a cooperative network or fictive kinship in the community, could facilitate migrant self-support and produce a more humane residential environment. For the migrants’low-rent housing in their destination city, retrieving the ethics of communal activities can be an alternative to controlling individualism and collectivism.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Chapter 1. Introduction 1
• 1.1 Concerns, problems and objectives of the study 1
• 1.2 Organization of the dissertation 7
• 1.3 Research questions 10
• 1.4 Research methodology 12
• 1.5 Three case studies of low-rent neighborhoods in China 26
• Chapter 2. Overview of Rural-to-Urban Migrant Community (Nongmin gong) and Migrants Low-Rent Housing History 30
• 2.1 Rural-to-urban migrant community (Nongmin gong) 31
• 2.1.1 From rural to urban area 31
• 2.1.2 From farmers (Nongmin) to rural migrants (Nongmin gong) 37
• 2.1.2.1 From leaving the field but not the village to leaving completely both the field and the village 38
• 2.1.2.2 From first-generation migrant to second-generation migrant 39
• 2.1.2.3 From floating to permanent settlement 40
• 2.1.2.4 From temporary dweller to permanent migrant 40
• 2.2 Accommodating rural migrants (Nongmin gong) in China 45
• 2.3 Migrants spontaneously-developed neighborhood in China 49
• 2.3.1 Commencement (1970-1990) 49
• 2.3.2 Growth (1990-2000) 56
• 2.3.3 Decomposition (2004-to present) 72
• 2.4 Development of contemporary low-rent high-rise apartments for rural migrants 74
• 2.5 Conclusion 78
• Chapter 3. Strengthening the Extended FamilyImplications for the Need to have Communal Activities for Rural-to-Urban Migrants 79
• 3.1 Traditional extended families in rural areas of China 79
• 3.1.1 Traditional extended families and collective lifestyle 79
• 3.1.2 Group-oriented versus individualistic culture 83
• 3.2 Need to have communal activities 86
• 3.2.1 Communal activities 86
• 3.2.2 Allowing the continuation of rural migrants lifestyle 90
• 3.3 Spatial structure for residents communal activities 102
• Chapter 4. First Case StudyYimuyuan Neighborhood in Beijing 104
• 4.1 Migrants spontaneously-developed housing in the Yimuyuan 105
• 4.2 Examining the spatial structure of the Yimuyuan neighbourhood 109
• 4.2.1 Migrants rental room 114
• 4.2.2 Migrants rental house 121
• 4.2.3 Between the rental houses 124
• 4.3 Examining the migrant residents activities 130
• 4.3.1 Front of migrants rental room 132
• 4.3.2 Front of migrants rental house 139
• 4.3.3 Between the rental houses 146
• 4.4 Examining the migrants residential perception 158
• 4.4.1 Cognitive image of rural-to-urban migrants 159
• 4.4.2 Survey 165
• 4.5 Finding: low living standard but high level of communal activities 173
• Chapter 5. Second Case StudyMinxin jiayuan Neighborhood in Chongqing 182
• 5.1 Government-subsidized Minxin Jiayuan low-rent neighborhood 182
• 5.2 Examining the spatial structure of Minxin Jiayuan neighbourhood and residents activities 186
• 5.2.1 Front of migrants rental room 186
• 5.2.2 Front of migrants rental house 190
• 5.2.3 Between the rental houses 194
• 5.3 Examining the migrantsresidential perception 198
• 5.3.1 Survey 198
• 5.4 Finding: absence of communal activities 204
• Chapter 6. Third Case StudyVanke Tulou Collective Housing in Guangzhou 210
• 6.1 Private developer-built Vanke Tulou collective housing 210
• 6.2 Examining the spatial structure of the Vanke Tulou collective housing and residents activities 213
• 6.2.1 Front of migrants rental room 213
• 6.2.2 Between the rental rooms 219
• 6.3 Examining the migrants residential perception 245
• 6.3.1 Survey 245
• 6.4 Finding: increased, but limited communal activities 247
• Chapter 7. Planning Strategies for Designing Rural-to-Urban Migrants Low-Rent Housing in China 254
• 7.1 Comparative analyses 255
• 7.1.1 Summary of findings 255
• 7.1.2 Spatial patterns 274
• 7.1.3 Residential satisfaction and experiences 281
• 7.2 Definition of shared functions combined with transitional spaces 288
• 7.2.1 Functions and shared functions 288
• 7.2.2 Lessons learned from the three migrants low-rent neighborhoods 293
• 7.3 Shared functions of serving the social and psychological needs of the rural migrating community (Nongmin gong) 298
• 7.4 Low-rent housing differing from the conventional housing 302
• 7.4.1 Lost functions in the contemporary low-rent housing 302
• 7.4.2 Proposed approach to housing migrant residents in low-rent housing 303
• 7.5 Guidelines for individual units and communal units 310
• 7.5.1 Standardization of the private dwelling units 310
• 7.5.2 Standardization of the communal units 316
• 7.6 Planning strategies for designing low-rent housing 318
• 7.6.1 Strategies for designing the pattern of private dwelling units 319
• 7.6.2 Strategies for designing the pattern of communal units 323
• 7.6.3 Strategies for five categories of shared functions and the locations of the functions in low-rent housing 324
• 7.6.3.1 Five categories of shared functions 324
• 7.6.3.2 The location of different shared functions in low-rent housing. 337
• 7.7 Low-rent housing support from a collective lifestyle from a background of traditional extended families in their use of shared functions 345
• Chapter 8. Conclusion 351
• 8.1 Criticism of modern high-rise low-rent neighborhoods in reference to Chengzhongcun neighborhood 351
• 8.2 Design effects on communal activities 353
• 8.2.1 Design influence on communal activities 353
• 8.2.2 Messages to the design professionals 355
• 8.3 Values and implications 356
• 8.4 Limitations of this research 359
• 8.5 Conclusion 361
• Appendix 1. Preparation of the dissertation 365
• Appendix 2. Notes on the field observation 365
• Appendix 3. Survey materials 369
• Bibliography 389