Reply of Nanning Municipal People’s Government on the Proposal of Representative No.2022523 of the Fifth Session of the 13th National People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region

Representative Li Lin:

The Proposal on Rebuilding the Phoenix Pavilion in Qingxiu Mountain (No.2022523) put forward by you at the Fifth Session of the 13th National People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region was handed over to our city by the General Office of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region. After study, we hereby reply as follows:

I. Suggestions on Defining the Urban Landmark Orientation of Phoenix Tower (Pavilion)

There is a phoenix in the north (Phoenix Ridge in Qingxiu Mountain) and five elephants in the south (Wuxiangling), which is an important geographical feature of Nanning, and Nanning has been named "Phoenix City" and "Wuxiangcheng" since ancient times. The Phoenix Tower, built in 1989, is located in Fenghuangling, the center of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area. It was once a landmark building in Nanning, and it was also a must-see place for citizens to visit Qingxiu Mountain and enjoy the urban scenery of Nanning. It witnessed the construction and development of Nanning for decades, and it was an important cultural carrier, cultural imprint, symbol of urban spirit and urban soul of Nanning.

In order to further enhance the architectural style and cultural connotation of Phoenix Tower, after the old Phoenix Tower was demolished in 2013, it failed to be rebuilt for nearly 10 years for various reasons, which left great regret for the general public and tourists. In 2021, Qingxiu Mountain Management Committee put forward a proposal to rebuild the Phoenix Tower. The Phoenix Tower to be rebuilt will be endowed with the functions of Nanning City History Exhibition Hall, Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition Hall, Botanical Herbarium and so on as needed, and a new urban landmark in Nanning will be built.

Two, about to carry out the scheme design, fully reflect the characteristics of the times, ethnic customs and regional characteristics of the proposal.

The design of the last version of Phoenix Tower was completed in 2013, nearly 10 years ago. With the development and progress of the times, the functional orientation and spatial layout of the original design can’t keep pace with the development of the situation.

In 2015, the People’s Government of the Autonomous Region approved the Master Plan of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area in Nanning (2012-2030), and in 2018, it approved the Reply of the People’s Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on the Detailed Planning of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L and M in Nanning, all of which put forward specific construction control requirements for the Phoenix Tower reconstruction project.

In January, 2022, when the main leaders of Nanning Municipal Committee attended the second session of the 12th CPPCC, after listening to the suggestions of CPPCC members on rebuilding the Phoenix Tower in Qingxiu Mountain to build a new highland for cultural tourism in Nanning, they proposed that the Phoenix Tower is the cultural imprint of Nanning people, and asked the relevant departments directly under the municipal government to conduct in-depth research and turn the insights of CPPCC members into concrete ideas and measures to promote the work as soon as possible. In February, Qingxiu Mountain Management Committee submitted the Request for Instructions on Rebuilding the Phoenix Tower in Qingxiu Mountain to Nanning Municipal People’s Government (Nanqing Guanbao [2022] No.9), suggesting to rebuild the Phoenix Tower as soon as possible. After research, Nanning Municipal People’s Government asked Qingxiu Mountain Management Committee to further demonstrate the necessity of rebuilding the Phoenix Tower project according to the opinions of relevant departments. In May, Nanning held a research and demonstration meeting on the reconstruction of Phoenix Tower. At present, a qualified unit is being entrusted to prepare a project proposal according to the opinions of the demonstration meeting to ensure that the new design scheme of Phoenix Tower is more scientific and reasonable in terms of architectural positioning, height, area, architectural style, materials and investment.

Three, about the Phoenix Tower project as the key project of the 2023 Autonomous Region Cultural Tourism Conference.

Due to the lack of construction time and other reasons, the reconstruction project of Phoenix Tower has not been included in the key projects of Guangxi Cultural Tourism Conference in 2023. In this regard, Nanning will speed up the preliminary work of the Phoenix Tower reconstruction project, and timely include it in the key projects of the city to accelerate.

Sincerely thank you for your concern and support for the work of Nanning Cultural Tourism! I hope to continue to put forward valuable opinions and suggestions in the future work.

June 24, 2022

(Contact: Li Yana Tel: 5560613)

Suggestions: Suggestions on rebuilding the Phoenix Pavilion in Qingxiu Mountain.

Representative Li Lin

First, the basic situation of the Phoenix Tower in Qingxiu Mountain

There is a phoenix in the north (Phoenix Ridge in Qingxiu Mountain) and five elephants in the south (Wuxiangling), which is an important geographical feature of Nanning, and Nanning has been named "Phoenix City" and "Wuxiangcheng" since ancient times. The terrain of Qingxiu Mountain is high in the northwest and low in the southeast. The Phoenix Ridge and Fengyiling in the northwest are shaped like a phoenix flying with wings, and are known as "Greentown Emerald, Zhuangxiang Phoenix".

Fenghuangling is located in the center of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area, and the peak of Fenghuangtou is 289 meters above sea level, which is the geographical commanding height of Nanning city. In 1989, the Phoenix Tower was built at the top of Phoenix Ridge. Phoenix Tower, with a total height of 32 meters, was once a landmark building in Nanning, and it was also a must-see place for citizens to climb the Mount Qingxiu and enjoy the city scenery of Nanning. With the continuous progress of the times, since the end of 1990s, the Phoenix Tower has been criticized by superior leaders and citizen tourists because of its inadequate architectural modeling and service functions. In 2013, the Phoenix Tower was demolished.

Second, the process of dismantling and rebuilding the Phoenix Tower

In February, 2008, the deputies of the People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region put forward the Proposal on Rebuilding the Phoenix Tower Complex in Qingxiu Mountain, Nanning (No.336, Suggestions, Criticism and Opinions of the First Session of the Eleventh People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region), suggesting to rebuild the Phoenix Tower and build it into a landmark attraction with profound cultural connotations and harmonious landscape functions.

In June, 2009, Qingxiu Mountain started bidding for the reconstruction plan of Phoenix Tower. Experts were organized to compare, select and review the design schemes of five companies, including the Design and Research Institute of Guangxi University, the Design Consulting Institute of Central South University of Forestry and Technology, and Guangxi Hualan Design (Group) Co., Ltd. In December 2012, the design scheme submitted by Guangxi Hualan (Design) Co., Ltd. was finally selected and reported to Nanning Municipal Government for study.

In January 2013, the Nanning Municipal Government approved the design scheme of the renovation project of Phoenix Pavilion in Qingxiu Mountain.

In August, 2013, with the consent of Nanning Municipal Government, Qingxiu Mountain Management Committee demolished Phoenix Tower and completed the site leveling work. Construction can be started after the approval is completed.

In June 2013, there was a negative online public opinion of "Xi ‘an 38 billion rebuilt the new Epang Palace" in Shaanxi. In September 2013, the Central Office forwarded the Notice of the General Office of the Central Committee of the CPC on Forwarding the Report of Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee on Studying and Implementing the Important Instructions of the Supreme Leader, and the planning, land and construction procedures of the Phoenix Pavilion were also suspended, so the construction of the Phoenix Pavilion was put on hold.

In January 2015, the people’s government of the autonomous region approved the Master Plan of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area in Nanning (2012-2030), in which the value of scenic spots resources of Phoenix Pavilion, Cycad Garden and Longxiang Tower were ranked as L level.

In February 2018, according to the Reply of the People’s Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on the Detailed Planning of Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L and M in Nanning (Gui Zheng Han [2018] No.30), regarding the landscape planning of area E, it is required to rebuild the Phoenix Pavilion according to the current situation. The construction index is: the building basement area is 5,000 square meters.

Three, the community strongly calls for the reconstruction of the Phoenix Tower.

For many years, after the Phoenix Tower was demolished, the Phoenix Ridge in Qingxiu Mountain was regarded as the geographical commanding height of Nanning. Because of the lack of the best place to climb and look far, citizens and tourists expressed their wishes through various channels, hoping to rebuild the Phoenix Tower in Qingxiu Mountain as soon as possible.

Many retired leaders from autonomous regions and Nanning are always concerned about the reconstruction of Phoenix Tower, and have visited Qingxiu Mountain many times to inquire about the reconstruction plan and progress.

In April, 2021, the representative of the 16th session of the 14th Nanning Municipal People’s Congress put forward the Proposal on Rebuilding the Phoenix Tower in Qingxiu Mountain (No.199 Representative’s Proposal), saying that "Phoenix Tower, as one of the landmark buildings in Nanning, also witnessed the rapid development of Nanning and carried the memory of several generations in Nanning. ….. The reconstruction of the Phoenix Tower has become something that the general public, tourists and all walks of life are eagerly looking forward to ". To this end, Qingxiu Mountain Management Committee has re-studied the design scheme of Phoenix Tower reconstruction.

Iv. Suggestions on rebuilding the Phoenix Pavilion

(1) It is suggested to clarify the urban landmark positioning of Phoenix Tower (Pavilion). The construction of Phoenix Pavilion in the geographical commanding heights of Nanning city aims to create an urban meeting room and an urban viewing platform with the style of the times and ethnic characteristics in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi. Its main functions are historical and cultural landmark buildings integrating tourism and cultural display. First, combining the construction of Nanning Botanical Garden, Phoenix Pavilion will be built into a China-ASEAN herbarium of rare and endangered plants. The second is to gather the regional cultural characteristics of Guangxi and build the Phoenix Pavilion into an exhibition hall of Guangxi intangible cultural heritage. The third is to show the history of Nanning’s urban construction and development, and to build the Phoenix Pavilion into an exhibition hall of Nanning’s 1600-year history.

(2) It is suggested to redevelop the scheme design to fully reflect the characteristics of the times, ethnic customs and regional characteristics. According to the design plan determined in 2013, the Phoenix Pavilion is 69.9 meters high, with a total construction area of 18,209 square meters and a total investment of about 240 million yuan. In view of the problems such as large building volume and high project cost, it is suggested that the new design scheme be adjusted as follows:

1. Reduce the construction area, streamline the functions of underground parking lots, shopping malls and restaurants, and strive to control the construction investment at around 188 million yuan.

2. In order to achieve the landscape effect of overlooking the whole city and overlooking the Phoenix Pavilion from the whole city, it is suggested to refer to the height of Chang ‘an Tower in Xi ‘an and set the height of the Phoenix Pavilion at 99 meters, which is not lower than the Wuxiang Tower (78.9 meters high in Wuxiang Lake Park) built in Nanning in 2013 and the Qingquan Pavilion (75 meters high in Nanning Garden Expo Park) built in 2017.

3. In terms of architectural style and materials, it is suggested to combine tradition, nationality and characteristics of the times, and use modern building materials, equipment and technology as building materials to comprehensively enhance the functions of the building. For example, the convenience of transportation can be improved by elevators, and the night landscape of Phoenix Pavilion can be improved by sound, light and electricity equipment.

(3) It is suggested that the people’s government of the autonomous region list the construction project of Phoenix Pavilion as the key project of the 2023 Autonomous Region Cultural Tourism Conference, and strive to complete it as soon as possible.