Would-be community activists, step carefully!
- Source: Global Times
- [21:51 March 17 2010]
- Comments
Illustration: Liu Rui
By Bill Siggins
After a few weeks of chatting up the neighbors about trying to solve some management issues in our little gated community in north Beijing, I've decided I had better be careful what I wish for.
A couple of months ago I learned that the ye zhu wei yuan hui (residents committee) has been all but dormant for four or five years. This seems odd to me considering the country once embraced collectivism and just about invented the all-seeing neighborhood committee.
I couldn't figure out why homeowners here wouldn't want to have input into how their community is run and stranger still that property managers wouldn't actively consult with residents.
The universal initial response when I asked neighbors about reviving the committee was a favorite Chinese catchphrase mei yong (no use). I tried to explain that the most successful condo developments in the West have owners' committees and that the property managers not only report to but take orders from it.
Community activism is also gaining momentum worldwide as it empowers people by giving them control over their local environment and contribute solutions to very large global issues.
I also made the point that the owners here in my neighborhood are paying management fees and they should have some say on how things are run within the community.
A visitor's likely first impression of our community of 200 houses and 200 apartments is that it is quiet, leafy and clean. The property managers are basically doing a good job.
Yet, after living here almost a year, I can see management is missing the beat on a number of issues that could be solved with some input from residents. I'd also like to see my neighbors have an outlet that would allow them to take more interest and responsibility for their place in the world.
The garbage disposal bins, for example, aren't nearly big enough and they require residents to lift a lid to toss their trash, which too many are loath to do for fear of contaminating their finger tips.
There is also a dearth of recreational facilities and the old guys are playing chess on lopsided orange crates while sitting precariously on wobbly chairs. Surely our fees, which amount to millions of yuan a year, could provide a few weatherproof table and chairs.
There's also a large overgrown vacant lot where a small community center was supposed to have been built years ago. My neighbors worry management will break its promise and build more houses there. It could easily be turned into a very nice community garden.
Meanwhile management has decreed that my two octogenarian neighbors can no longer use a tiny patch of land in the back where they grew cucumbers and squash, which they had shared with anyone who asked.
My biggest concern is with the coal-fired plant that provides heat and hot water and spews smoke and ash from a chimney that is by far the tallest structure in the community.
Everyone knows it's bad for the environment and our health, yet all assume there's no way to convert to gas without raising fees sky high. A committee could study available new technologies, infrastructure subsidies like selling carbon credits, and the cost of doing nothing.
Unfortunately some neighbors immediately want to get a bandwagon rolling that would help them avoid paying their management fees. One told me he hasn't paid his fees in five years because of a dispute with management. He had put a carpet in the building stairwell and someone stole it. Somehow he thinks his dumb move is management's fault.
