One Year After the General Secretary’s Visit, Shanghai’s “Home for Urban Builders and Managers of the New Era” Feels More Like Home
Over a year ago, migrant workers Zhang Songwei and Wu Tao moved into the New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home in Maqiao Town, Minhang District, where they felt the warmth of the city.
On November 29, 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping visited the New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home in Minhang District, Shanghai. He stated that migrant workers who come to Shanghai to contribute are also masters of the city. It is necessary to practice the concept of a people-centered city, continuously meet the diverse and pluralistic housing needs of the people, and ensure that migrants can enter, stay, live comfortably, and thrive in the city.
As the first anniversary of the inspection approaches, the New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home in Shanghai continues to expand, with accelerated upgrades in soft services. In the past year, new projects have frequently been launched, and service spaces have become increasingly diverse, with some adding bus stops, others opening shared reading rooms, and still others establishing community canteens.
For urban constructors, this “home” scattered across the city has become more like a real home.
Upgrade and Expansion: Targeting “Hundreds of Thousands” of Beds
A year ago, in a room at CR Land’s Youchao Apartment in Maqiao Town, Minhang District, Zhang Songwei and Wu Tao met the General Secretary who came for an inspection and had a casual chat with him. They had just moved in and felt the warmth of the city for the first time. Now, Zhang Songwei is about to obtain his Shanghai residency permit, and his party organization relationship has been transferred to the community. Wu Tao, who works in property management, has relocated his workplace directly to his doorstep.
Their ties with the New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home have become increasingly close, and the community has continuously made multiple service improvements to bring the “urban constructors” together. During the Spring Festival, they made dumplings and cooked New Year’s Eve dinner together; during the spring resumption of work, they launched the “New Job Center at Your Doorstep” project; during the hot summer, they established the “Charity Gas Station” public service station to provide heatstroke prevention and cooling products for frontline workers; and in autumn, they organized basketball friendship matches…
Currently, the project boasts a 700㎡ ultra-large public activity area, including a 450㎡ Party-Mass Service Station in Building 3, providing one-stop diversified services such as government affairs processing, healthcare, self-study reading, audio-visual entertainment, and cultural, sports, and fitness activities. Meanwhile, football fields, basketball courts, and outdoor fitness areas allow tenants to enjoy “freedom of movement,” and the over 1800㎡ community commercial street at the entrance of the community covers various business types such as dining, supermarkets, hair salons, and express delivery stations. On November 29, the newly built Building 9 of the apartment will also be put into trial operation as a community service space, with nearly 2000㎡ of space including a Chinese medicine physiotherapy room, a reception room, a parent-child corner, and more.
Expansion Across the City
In 2023, Shanghai’s first batch of 25 “New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home” projects provided 11,000 beds, covering all 16 districts of the city. These have all been made available to the public, with monthly rental prices mainly ranging from 500-1000 yuan per bed. Currently, the overall occupancy rate is over 80%. In 2024, “providing an additional 30,000 or more beds for the New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home” was listed as a government project for the benefit of the people. By the end of October, Shanghai had already secured over 30,000 beds, achieving the annual target ahead of schedule.
The Dachang Chengjia Apartment in Baoshan District was officially unveiled as a “New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home” project in March this year, offering 156 beds mainly in double and triple rooms, with average rents ranging from 800-950 yuan per bed. Each room is equipped with an independent bathroom, refrigerator, air conditioner, range hood, and washing machine, and the project has a signing rate of 95%.
The Lianyu Apartment in Jing’an District, which began supplying in July, is also a typical case of innovative project fundraising. The apartment was originally a vacant industrial factory building of the former Shanghai Toy Factory. After renovation, it mainly offers four- and six-person rooms, providing 1,310 beds, making it the largest “New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home” project in the central urban area. Weng Zeqi, the person in charge of Lianyu Apartment and General Manager of Shanghai Fuxin Zhiyuan Real Estate Co., Ltd., told reporters that currently, 1,192 people are living there, with an occupancy rate of over 90%.
According to the Shanghai Housing Security Affairs Center, the next plan is to increase the total number of beds from “tens of thousands” to “hundreds of thousands” by 2027 and basically establish a full-lifecycle mechanism for planning, construction, fundraising, supply, operation, and management.
Needs Are Seen: Bus Stops and Canteens Can Be Established
A delivery rider living in Dachang Chengjia Apartment told reporters that living in the “New Era Urban Constructor and Manager’s Home” is much cheaper than renting a room outside, and electric bicycles can be charged, and clothes can be washed and dried using a dryer every day, which is very convenient.
Apart from the low prices, the supporting services of this “home” are becoming increasingly heartwarming and comprehensive, ranging from laundry and cooking to sports and entertainment. Various projects continue to open up new spaces and expand the radius and warmth of the “home” based on the needs of residents.
In Dachang Chengjia Apartment, a shared reading room was officially unveiled in April this year. As the first 24-hour self-service “shared reading room” in Shanghai’s talent apartments, it is connected to the city’s public library system for borrowing and returning books and provides access to a vast amount of digital resources, cloud reading rooms, and customized book purchasing services. Li Jun, the director of the Baoshan District Library, said that the reading room has about 5,000 paper books and a digital box containing 3,000 books, 500 audiobooks, and 200 movies.
“This reading room is always occupied,” said Li Jun. Residents come to “read” more than to “borrow.” It is not just a reading room but also a platform for community socializing. Apart from basic services, the shared reading room also regularly organizes reading salons, book-related social events, and book sharing activities, which attract many young talents to participate.
In addition, the Party-Mass Service Center established in Chengjia Apartment has a service list containing 30 items, including legal consultation, general clinics, intangible cultural heritage experiences, and board game parties. The service resources available may vary across different projects, but one thing is consistent – the needs of residents are seen.
In CR Land’s Youchao Apartment, to facilitate residents’ travel, the community has opened five shuttle bus routes, including those to Xinzhuang Industrial Zone, Aerospace City, China Shipbuilding, Minhang Development Zone, and a shuttle bus to Beiqiao Subway Station. However, the capacity of the shuttle buses is always limited, and many residents have expressed the hope for a bus route to pass through the community. This need was quickly reflected to the transportation department by district people’s congress representatives, and since August 31, the 881 bus route has added a stop named Zhongqing Road Beisong Highway Station, about 50 meters from the community gate, greatly conveniencing residents’ daily travel.
In response to the actual needs of residents, Lianyu Apartment has paid more attention to specific details. On the basis of generally equipped audio-visual rooms, public kitchens, and reading rooms, the project has also opened a hair salon and a medical clinic, providing services to residents for two half-days each week.
In addition, the operator noticed the high volume of daily food delivery orders and that residents have more needs in terms of dining. How to provide them with more choices? Across from Lianyu Apartment, a community canteen tailored for this purpose is being built. It is understood that the canteen is expected to be over 200 square meters, providing about 90 seats and two small private rooms, and will be completed by mid-to-late December.
Weng Zeqi said, “It’s better to have everyone gather together at the doorstep to eat than to order takeouts. It feels warmer that way.”
