Liangjiang New Area becomes pioneer in building community life circles

The Aoyuan community in Liangjiang New Area is equipped with basic amenities such as breakfast shops, convenience stores, vegetable markets, barber shops, and hospitals. [Photo/WeChat account of Liangjiang New Area]

Liangjiang New Area has been selected as one of 15 regions to pioneer the nationwide implementation of urban 15-minute community life circles, the Ministry of Commerce announced on July 29.

The initiative aims to ensure that residents can access essential services within a 15-minute walk from their homes.

Over the next two years, these pilot regions will strive to ensure that all residents of their main urban communities are within a life circle. The selected areas include Beijing's Dongcheng district, Tianjin's Binhai New Area, Shijiazhuang in Hebei province, and Yinchuan in Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

As of June 2024, the first three batches of 150 national pilot areas have established 3,946 community life circles, encompassing 888,200 commercial outlets and serving 76.76 million community residents.

In Liangjiang, community life circles are thriving, with nearly 60 percent of the population located within one. Two subdistricts achieved the feat through replication and promotion. By the end of June this year, Liangjiang had built 45 community commercial centers and over 10,000 commercial outlets, with a resident satisfaction rate exceeding 95 percent.

The Aoyuan community is a standout example, featuring basic amenities such as breakfast shops, convenience stores, vegetable markets, barber shops, and hospitals. It also addresses the needs of the elderly and children by offering art training, cultural performances, and summer care activities.

In the Xingjiaqiao community, residents benefit from amenities including a breakfast shop, eight bus stops within an eight-minute walk, and two metro stations within a 15-minute walk. The community has established a home-school-community co-education base to provide psychological counseling services and an entrepreneurship and employment service station to make employment resources more accessible and promote resident employment.

In the Jinzhou community, modern information technologies such as smart access control, digital property management, and firefighting training robots are being integrated into daily life. Community staff report that these systems and facilities significantly enhance the lives of residents.

The successful practices of Xingjiaqiao and Jinzhou communities have been included in the Ministry of Commerce's collection of exemplary cases for nationwide promotion.

Liangjiang is dedicated to advancing the construction of community life circles by standardizing community information databases, assessment systems, and cultural IPs. The area is implementing urban renewal projects, developing neighborhood centers, and exploring micro-renovation to enhance infrastructure.

Efforts to upgrade smart services include expanding smart facilities and integrating smart platforms. Special funds are being allocated for activities such as convenience consumption vouchers and convenience life festivals to encourage community participation.