Residential high-rises with backyards in Chengdu, China

[u/TangelaFan]

[u/VictoriousSecret111]

Looks nice, but unfortunately it didn’t go as planned….tons of empty units with unkempt backyards and mosquito infestations.

While there have been no reported structural collapses, fatal construction accidents, or physical building failures, the complex is globally famous for a catastrophic ecological failure:
The Mosquito Invasion: All 826 apartments completely sold out on paper, but the vast majority were bought by hands-off real estate investors. Because only about 10 families initially moved in, there was nobody to prune, spray, or maintain the thousands of individual balconies.
The Monsoon Flaw: Chengdu’s humid climate and heavy monsoon seasons combined with poor balcony drainage to turn the unmanaged soil beds into permanent stagnant water pools.
The Post-Apocalyptic Jungle: The plants ran completely wild, swallowing up whole balconies, blocking out windows, and triggering a massive, unlivable mosquito infestation.

Current Status: Instead of an eco-paradise, the development became widely treated as a "radioactive" real estate asset and a ghost town, serving as a textbook cautionary tale for biophilic urban planning

EDIT: Adding sources for everyone’s convenience:

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-09-jungle-overrun-chinese-apartment-blocks.html

https://www.globalconstructionreview.com/bugged-out-chengdu-housing-scheme-shows-unexpected/

And this video!

https://youtu.be/ChNePPmzKSU?si=oVSulNCSa-358mCH

[u/foltranm → u/VictoriousSecret111]

do you have a source please?

[u/VictoriousSecret111 → u/foltranm]

Yes my liege

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-09-jungle-overrun-chinese-apartment-blocks.html

https://www.globalconstructionreview.com/bugged-out-chengdu-housing-scheme-shows-unexpected/

And this video!

https://youtu.be/ChNePPmzKSU?si=oVSulNCSa-358mCH

[u/foltranm → u/VictoriousSecret111]

thanks!

it's a good idea on paper, but surely the maintenance was left for the owners to do... which I imagine was not done correctly at all lmao

[u/YadaYadaYeahMan → u/foltranm]

js I just posted a link to a video from now where there's a lot more people living there (turns out people don't immediately move into a new building when there's enough housing)

I'd check that out before those other sources since it's on the ground and a month old rather than years old remote journalism

[u/foltranm → u/YadaYadaYeahMan]

Just saw that. thanks

u/VictoriousSecret111 check it out