Life in Liugong Village

In 1949, six hundred thousand troops led by the KMT government came to Taiwan. At that time, there was insufficient housing to meet the sheer number of troops, and so the government turned a blind eye to troops, allowing them to build their own homes on vacant ground near the barracks: the government of the time went as far as to help the troops with building materials. Most of these mainlanders were required to build their homes entirely off their own back, and over a half of these are technically were considered ‘illegal dwellings’. Fifty years ago in Taipei, a group of homeless soldiers decided to build their homes adjacent to Liugong waterway and lane 11 of Lixing Rd, homes that they are now unable to simply give up, giving rise to the ‘ Helplessness of Dependents Village’ movement.

In Taipei City, the Liugong Waterway, which has been running for around 270 years, not only provides essential irrigation water for farmers’ fields, but has also been the source of various villages and dwellings along its course. The kitchens and bathrooms of countless homes are built backing onto it. Entering Lane 11 of Lixing Rd. is like going back in time, entering a maze of snaking alleyways with a rich diversity of housing styles all built on stilts blanketing the meandering waterway. The bridge over the waterway became an unforgettable scene in the movie ‘The Best of Times’, filmed by Director Chang Tso-chi. In 2009, New Taipei City Government (then Taipei County Government) held a meeting to announce that owing to planned restoration work on Liugong Waterway, the houses in Liugong Village would need to be demolished. Since that time the government and residents of the village have been unable to come to an agreement over how to solve the issue. If we look at the situation from another way, we can see that it could be solved if the government simply provides funding to renovate the village, while at the same time trying to retain the unique style of the area, everybody could be a winner!
 

 
Life in Liugong Village (by CJ michelleliou)

URL: http://www.peopo.org/news/83129

(以下為中文對照)

?公圳上的眷村人生 ( 蜜雪兒 )( michelleliou) 

照片

民國38年，國民政府率領六十萬軍隊來台，當時的「列管眷村」數量不足根本無法解決龐大的居住需求，政府只好睜一隻眼閉一隻眼，讓無配屋的軍人在軍營旁的 空地自力造屋，政府甚至會用軍中資源來協助建造以解決眷村不足的問題。這些大部分以外省人為主的自發性聚落，多半是以違章建築(公地私建)的樣貌存在所以 又稱「非列管眷村」，五十年前在台北，一群無屋的軍人自力造屋，?公圳與力行路11巷從此密不可分，無法離開與捨不下的情感，開始了「非列管眷村」的無 奈！在大台北流過270年頭的?公圳，除了背負灌溉農田的使命，也造就了許多屬於圳溝旁老老小小的聚落風貌，沿著水圳，當的的住家門戶與廚房浴室自成一 格，兩旁形成彎彎曲曲的巷道，走入力行路11巷就像步入時光隧道般，舊式建築的人文風貌與特殊的吊腳樓、過水橋，也成為張作驥導演拍攝”美麗時光”的重要 場景之一。2009年，新北市政府(當時是台北縣政府)開說明會，宣布因?公圳再造需被拆遷，一直以來，政府政策和居民在整建與保留上無法取得平衡，但如 果能換個思維把自然的、舊有的融入新設計中，除了能達到雙贏，也許還能產生新的文化風貌也說不定。

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