Page 55 - JCAU-5-4

Journal of Chinese
Architecture and Urbanism Learning from the countryside

The ordinate axis indicates whether the control grid of the along Pu within the village has also persisted into the
settlement form is more inclined toward an organic or contemporary era, adapting to the growth of the village
planned configuration. Unlike the simplistic urban-rural population.
dichotomy, this classification provides a more nuanced In the present situation, Kandun is demarcated by the
response to the urban-rural division mentioned in Haitang river, resulting in a land use pattern where the
Section 3.2. built-up area lies to the south while the agricultural area
Type III represents a morphological system determined extends to the north. The administrative boundaries of
by seawalls. As evident from the ordinate axis, this villages within Kandun are divided along the Pu, effectively
morphological system falls between planned and organic. segregating each village into two distinct areas (Figure 18).
The abscissa axis reveals that this morphological system Unlike the general case of single-function Taobao
spans the entire spectrum from rural to urban areas, villages (AliResearch, 2019), this spatial configuration
demonstrating a high degree of adaptability. allows the four Taobao villages within Kandun to form

3.3.2. Fieldwork in Kandun an industrial model that encompasses both industry and
agriculture.
Kandun is a town affiliated with Cixi, representing a typical
example of the morphological adaptations previously Highly productive family workshops have played a
mentioned. It adheres to the framework defined by seawalls pivotal role in driving industrial growth. However, driven
and has adapted to populations of different sizes from the primarily by economic considerations, individual villagers
1970s to the present. have been committed to maximizing and developing their
homesteads in the most cost-effective manner. This has
14
The seawall framework not only serves as a led to a chaotic and disorganized situation in this part of
morphological structure but also as an economic the built-up area. The production scale within these family
production structure. During the Jiajing period of the workshops cannot be further expanded due to the limitation
Ming Dynasty (1522 – 1566), residents in Kandun initially of available residential land. However, field research has
developed the salt and fishing industries along the beach. revealed a phenomenon in which farms in the northern
Subsequently, due to the continuous northward expansion agricultural area have engaged in street beautification in
of beaches, cotton and beans became widespread crops the southern built-up area. It is a return to the tradition
during the Qing Dynasty. of mutual promotion between agricultural and residential
These main industries have fostered the growth of the areas in the Kandun area. The examples from the field
handicraft industry. Salt workers required tools such as research illustrate that the development model, formed
scrapers and shovels during the salt age, while fishermen by the spatial morphology and production pattern highly
needed fishing boats and hooks. The agricultural era related to the construction of the seawalls, remains highly
necessitated items such as grass knives and fences, which adaptable in the latest trend of contemporary Taobao
local craftsmen provided. With the evolution of the cotton villages.
industry and the plantation of oil crops, cotton processing
and manual oil workshops also began to be set up. Kandun 3.3.3. Reshaping urban-rural continuum in Kandun
has a long history of family workshops, where land is used The Seawall-based urban-rural continuum system in the
for agricultural production, and housing plays a crucial Cixi region faces a threat from contemporary generic urban
role in the development of the handicraft industry (Fang, design. In 2020, the China Academy of Urban Planning &
2006). This production relationship has persisted in today’s Design unveiled the Qianwan New Area, which primarily
Taobao village . covers the northern part of the Sanbei Plain, incorporating
13
In the present day, Kandun comprises four Taobao Kandun into its development plan. The objective of
villages. The distribution pattern of villages, established the plan is to transform this area into a new high-tech
through the construction of seawalls, has laid the manufacturing city accommodating 1.25 million people
15
foundation for the present-day distribution of production by 2035. Within the Kandun area, a business office area
areas and residential areas. The plot distribution pattern dominated by towers is set to emerge, with the high-speed
railway station as the center. This vision sharply contrasts

13 Since 2009, China has witnessed the phenomenon of 14 Homestead is the land used by rural villagers to build
using e-commerce platforms such as Taobao for product residential houses, including land designated for housing,
sales in rural areas. If the sales volume and the number of accessory houses, and yards.
participating villagers reach a certain scale, these areas are 15 Ningbo Planning Bureau; China Academy of Urban
officially recognized as Taobao villages. Planning and Design, 2018.

Volume 5 Issue 4 (2023) 16 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.0981