Circles of Convenience

By Lu Yan

Wang Yong had run a streetside stall to repair watches and make keys in Yangpu District of Shanghai for decades. Recently， the 54-year-old handyman moved his business to an indoor community business center nearby， putting an end to his days of working outdoors， braving the wind and rain.

“The environment here is much better with a stable customer flow. I only need to pay water and electricity and other miscellaneous fees， but no rent，” Wang told Shanghai-based Jiefang Daily.

Many street vendors and handymen like Wang in Shanghai have been invited to run businesses in community workshops or stores supported by local governments and enterprises， in line with a national effort to build “15-minute convenient life circles.”

A document released by 12 government departments including the Ministry of Commerce in July says that convenient life circles will be built with services available within 15 minutes walk to satisfy residentsbasic needs. The facilities encouraged include convenience stores， drug stores， and hair salons， as well as higher-end facilities such as cafés， pet stores and gyms.

“Normally， residential areas function as places for living. But with the ‘15-minute convenient life circles， a residential area will serve as a micro-city where residents can access facilities to meet all of their most basic， day-to-day needs within a 15-minute walk from their home，” said Li Feng， Deputy Director of the Bureau of Land and Space Planning at the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Right at door

Shanghai has been working on building such convenient life circles for years. In 2016， the municipality released a series of policy documents， pledging to construct community service centers and ancillary facilities that can make residents life more convenient.

Formerly a farmers market， Qinhai Community Business Center in Yangpu where Wang works， has had a successful makeover. In the past， the market only sold groceries， while now the 1，300-squaremeter area not only has a supermarket， but also facilities such as a gym， a flower store， restaurants， bakeries， a childrens entertainment ground and tailor shops， providing all kinds of services to residents nearby.

There is also a shared kitchen where families could cook together and share a meal in the public dining area. A meeting hall is also available for neighbors to get together.

“The clean and homey environment is an important reason for me to come here. I buy breakfast in the morning and get groceries after work here every day. I can get almost everything done here，” Wang Xiaoyao， a resident living nearby， told Beijing Review.