Coming Down Alert – Pingliang Road Villa

Pingliang Road (Ping Liang Road) is one of the major thoroughfares that runs from Hongkou (Hongkew) into Yangpu (Yangtszepoo). As such it attracted some nice villas and houses for various Chinese and foreigners who either decided to live in the slightly cheaper environs of the further north east of the Settlement or who worked in the industrial units of Yangtszepoo which included China’s gas, electric and other utilities. The area is currently getting a caning and quality of architecture is no consideration as the loss of this villa, on Pingliang Road between Dalian Road (Dalny Road) and Jingxing Road (Jansen Road) shows.

This building was recently restored – the faux brick cladding on the outside was not that nice but the roof was repaired and the stand out feature of several attractive chimneys kept in place (they rarely are even on restored buildings due to the limits on real fires in Shanghai). The lower level housing around this villa went last year and it was to be hoped that the villa’s habitable quality and recent refurbishment would save it – but the chai signs have been daubed on it now.

This is hardly destruction of slums – were this building in the former French Concession it would (unless unlucky enough to be in the way of Sinan Mansions!!) be turned into a posh restaurant or bar. However, the Bright Young People of Shanghai rarely venture into the Hongkou/Yangpu environs while it is all pretty much terra incognita to the lychee martini drinking classes among foreign Shanghai. So it’s going…

Note the good condition of the roof, the solid brickwork and the excellent chimneys – there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this building whatsoever – except that it is in the way of some developer’s plans

It’s position close to the main road makes it an attractive location…sadly the fashionable classes don’t venture north of Suzhou Creek

and once more with the trademark London plane trees lining Pingliang Road

And finally…what’s left of a similar villa nearby that got it’s roof ripped of and trashed just a couple of months ago