2016 Volume 89 Issue 1 Pages 22-38
Urban renewal in Shanghai has been underway since the early 1990s. This study focuses on the effect of urban renewal within Shanghai's central district, Jing'an. The methods used in this study were first, investigations of land use in Jing'an district to map the actual situation in detail, and second, analysis of small area data to discuss the correlation between the change in land use caused by urban renewal and the change in population in the downtown area.
The analyses showed that the urban renewal of Jing'an district is in a process of “scrap and build,” that is, condominiums are being built in place of lilong housing (traditional lanes of terraced homes). The downtown area has always been a residential area, and its urban function has not changed along with urban renewal. A number of previous studies of Shanghai's urban renewal, from a macroscopic view on the urban or district level, indicated that the population density has decreased as the number of high-rise buildings has increased. This study using small area data on a Residents' Committee level to analyze population redistribution in Jing'an district with urban renewal demonstrated that a population decline did not occur in all regions, but instead increased in some.
Geographical Review of Japa,. Ser. A, Chirigaku Hyoron
