The Nankai Airport Night Market is located within the Nankai public housing community, which is divided into several urban renewal units with varying progress—some have established renewal associations, completed developer recruitment, or submitted development and rights conversion plans. Next, I will discuss the most challenging area: the Nankai Airport Night Market.

The night market is situated in the first phase of the Nankai public housing estate, built half a century ago by the government to provide housing for citizens. At the time of its inauguration, high-ranking officials including Chiang Ching-kuo attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony. It was also showcased as a model community for foreign visitors and returning overseas Chinese.

With economic growth, living standards in Taiwan have significantly improved, and newer, larger, and more modern apartment buildings have emerged. These early public housing units have gradually become the 'oldest and most outdated' with relatively small floor areas. As residents’ children grow up and start their own families, they naturally move out of the cramped spaces in Nankai, leaving only elderly family members behind.

Some households have completely relocated, renting out their units. Since most apartments are around 10 ping (approx. 33 sqm), they offer lower rents compared to 20–30 ping apartments, making them attractive rental options for young workers migrating to Taipei. According to a 2015 door-to-door survey by the Taipei City Urban Renewal Office, only half of the residents in the Nankai housing complex are owner-occupiers.

For easier identification in urban renewal planning, the night market area within the first-floor buildings is referred to as 'shops,' while the area on the community’s statutory open space is called 'vendors.'

Since statutory open space is not designated as road land, vendors are not occupying public road space. Current vendors have taken over their stalls from previous ones, often through multiple generations, without formal documentation. Even if compensation is provided under the Urban Renewal Act, it falls far short of market value.

Shops in the night market have high commercial performance and thus extremely high property values. However, upper-floor residences suffer from pollution such as oil fumes and noise from the night market, resulting in poor living quality and lower market value. The value of a single ground-floor shop far exceeds that of the combined 2nd to 5th floor units. Under rights conversion, ground-floor owners would receive significantly higher value than upper-floor residents.

The Nankai public housing units were built based on the minimal living standards of their time, with unit sizes of only 8, 10, or 12 ping. Many households have expanded their living space through unauthorized additions. Even if residents receive floor area equivalent to their registered ownership after renewal, it would still be only around 10 ping, making participation in urban renewal unattractive.

The challenges faced by Nankai are not unique—any area with high commercial performance encounters similar issues.

Author Introduction｜Chang Keng-wei Urban Renewal Promoter, Taipei City Project Planner, Taipei Housing and Urban Renewal Center Host, YouTube Channel 'The Urban Renewal Person' Project Executive, Organization of Urban Research (OURs) Lecturer and Reviewer, Taipei Urban Regeneration Academy On-site Planner, Autonomous Urban Renewal Community Workstations in Datong, Nangang, Xinyi, Beitou, and Shilin Districts Lecturer, 'First Class on Participating in Urban Renewal' at Zhongzheng, Da’an, Xinyi, Nangang, and Wenshan Community Colleges Urban Renewal Consultant, Julé Bang Master, Graduate Institute of Urban and Rural Studies, National Taiwan University

This article is republished with permission from Commonwealth Publishing's 'Urban Renewal On-site Q&A: 76 Key Questions Fully Answered on Residents’ Most Concerned Rights, Processes, and Distributions in Urban Renewal' (original title: 'Nankai Airport Night Market Urban Renewal Has Been Talked About for 30 Years—Why Hasn’t It Happened Yet?')

Responsible Editor／Lin Li

FACT BOX

  • Source: PR Times
  • Category: News