Why Is a Commercial Hotel Built in a Scientific Research Park? In Response to the Issue of Scientific Research Land Being Used for Commercial Purposes in Jianye District, Nanjing, He Liu, Director of the Nanjing Planning and Natural Resources Bureau, Responded During the Jiangsu-wide Live Broadcast Program “Zhengfeng Hotline – I’ll Help You Ask the Director” on November 19. He Mentioned That the Relevant Departments Are Currently Investigating the Suspected Violations and Fraudulent Behavior Related to the Use of the Project.
He also indicated that the functions of research and development (R&D) land can be legally changed after construction. Within R&D land, it is allowed to have supporting administrative offices and living service facilities, which are required not to exceed 15% of the total building area. However, changing the use requires application and approval.
During the program, Hua Sheng, Director of the Land and Spatial Planning Bureau of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Natural Resources, stated that the construction of projects should strictly follow the approved planning permits. During the construction and implementation process, due to special needs, adjustments to the use conversion can be made under the premise of ensuring safety, but strict approval procedures should be followed.
According to the “Zhengfeng Hotline” live broadcast program, a Nanjing citizen, Mr. Zhang, recently reported that Kangyuan Zhihui Port in Jianye District of Nanjing has leased out buildings originally intended for scientific research purposes for external recruitment, and most of the businesses that have settled in have no relation to scientific research.
Separately, according to CCTV.com, Kangyuan Zhihui Port has a commercial hotel built within the buildings intended for scientific research. According to the “Construction Project Planning Permit” and “Real Estate Ownership Certificate” provided by the hotel, the building use for floors 1-15 of the hotel building is for scientific research and experimental purposes.
He Liu, Director of the Nanjing Planning and Natural Resources Bureau, stated during the “Zhengfeng Hotline” live broadcast program that the Kangyuan Zhihui Port project is an R&D land project located within the Jianye High-tech Zone. The land for this project was transferred in 2009, with the land use designated for R&D at that time. Citizens have reported that part of the project is used for commercial purposes, including beauty salons, hair salons, cafes, hotels, etc. The bureau has recently received reports of this situation and is currently investigating the suspected violations and fraudulent behavior related to the use of the project.
He Liu said that in order to accelerate the development of Nanjing as an important base for new productive forces, Nanjing has supplied a relatively large amount of R&D land in recent years. These R&D lands were mainly introduced as carriers for technological innovation and managed with reference to industrial lands. The Kangyuan Zhihui Port project obtained construction project planning permits in 2011 and 2016, and legally obtained a planning certificate in 2019, with all construction and planning management behaviors being legal and compliant until the planning and completion acceptance.
He Liu mentioned that after the construction of R&D land, its functions can be legally changed. In response to the possibility of new industrial development situations or inadequate supporting facilities after the large-scale scientific research carriers are put into use, Nanjing has specifically issued relevant documents allowing supporting administrative offices and living service facilities within R&D land, with a requirement not to exceed 15% of the total building area, but application and approval are required.
Hua Sheng, Director of the Land and Spatial Planning Bureau of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Natural Resources, stated during the program that for specific projects, planning conditions must be issued based on the approved district planning, clarifying the land use, and should be strictly implemented in subsequent planning permits and project construction. For special situations where changes to the planned use are indeed necessary, sufficient necessity demonstrations must be conducted, detailed planning must be legally amended, and implementation can only proceed after approval by the relevant government.
Hua Sheng said that they are further strengthening the supervision of planning implementation. In 2023, the Provincial Department of Natural Resources researched and deployed a provincial-wide regulatory system for the control of land and spatial use, achieving full-process supervision from the issuance of planning conditions, the transfer of land use rights, the issuance of planning permits, to planning verification. At the same time, they urge local natural resource departments to properly publicize planning and permits, ensure smooth feedback channels for opinions, and leverage the supervisory role of the public in planning facilities and project construction.