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Peter Simpson

He proudly boasts his development company has built 78 "European-style palace" buildings in Beijing.
And if Chinese real-estate billionaire Ni Zhaoxing gets his way, he will erect his 79th architectural wonder of steel and glass in the British capital.
Ni, who owns the Shanghai-based ZhongRong Group, is the vision and money muscle behind the £500 million (HK$6.2 billion) bid to raise from the ashes a replica of London's Crystal Palace 76 years after it burned down.
The 57-year-old entrepreneur - one of China's richest men - declared that, if approved, the project "will be like a tree from which the whole world will enjoy the shade".
But, in contrast to China, where he can construct and wax lyrical without opposition, Ni has already come up against a formidable opponent - a local residents' association, the ubiquitous and well-organised community group that has long been the bane of UK property developers.
The Crystal Palace Residents' Association fears the ambitious scheme will choke one of London's vital green spaces.
And within minutes of Ni unveiling his scale model in the presence of London Mayor Boris Johnson, it made its voice heard.
"It's being dressed up as a heritage project but there's not enough details, and the devil's in the details," said association head Amanda Sciberras.
She said the proposal appeared to be a commercial venture rather than a cultural one, as claimed by Ni.
The businessman said the new building would be "on the size and scale of the original", which first opened to house the Great Exhibition of 1851 and was the epitome of world-beating Victorian engineering.
The palace would be intended to compete with such established exhibitions as the British Museum and the Grand Palais in Paris, drawing up to two million visitors a year.
The 900,000-square-foot replica would contain several art galleries, a music venue, a hotel and a conference centre, he said.
It would be built on the same site in southeast London which bears its name and to which the original was moved from Hyde Park in 1854.
Modern materials instead of cast iron and plate glass would be used to construct the "transparent" 500-metre-long, 50-metre high building, which would be a piece of "artwork" and a "jewel in the crown for Britain and the world", Ni said.
The plans could be submitted by next year and if approved the project could open in 2018.
"Some people ask me, 'Why would you invest in Crystal Palace in London?'" he said at the ceremony on Thursday at which he outlined his investment.
"I have two daughters who both have been studying in the UK for 10 years … I love London just as much as I love my own country, China."
The original Crystal Palace has many fans in China who draw inspiration from the Victorians' construction methods.
Chinese engineering students study the original design drawn up by Sir Joseph Paxton, a gardener who earned the commission with his pioneering work on unprecedentedly big greenhouses and conservatories.
Ni's plan is the latest sign of a thawing of the Sino-UK relationship after Beijing froze London out because Prime Minister David Cameron met the Dalai Lama last year.
In recent weeks, UK cabinet ministers have been in China drumming up trade and promoting British business while several large Chinese companies have been investing in the UK.
But though his words and blueprints resonate with politicians and businesses, he may have his work cut out to construct trust and support among locals. They have a track record of rebuffing proposals from outsiders, including housing developments.
"Parks are for people not for profit. We're concerned it will be a commercial operation, take away grass and trees and change the nature of the park," said local resident Nick Goy, 52.
"When the original palace was built, it stood in the countryside. Now London is a very different place. It has expanded and we have very few green lungs like this left," he added.


Residents wary of Chinese developer's plan to rebuild Crystal Palace

An artist's impression of what the Crystal Palace will look like onced it is rebuilt by the Chinese investment firm ZhongRong Group at a cost of HK$6.2 billion. Critics question its founder's motives. Photo: AFP

The remains of the Crystal Palace after a fire burned it down in 1936. Ni intends to base his model on the original design. Photo: AP

Businessman Ni Zhaoxing

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World

Chinese developer out to resurrect London icon must convince locals his goal isn't commercial


Ni Zhaoxing, who owns the Shanghai-based ZhongRong Group, is the vision and money muscle behind the £500 million (HK$6.2 billion) bid to raise from the ashes a replica of London's Crystal Palace 76 years after it burned down.


Residents wary of Chinese developer's plan to rebuild Crystal Palace

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Chinese developer out to resurrect London icon must convince locals his goal isn't commercial

Chinese developer out to resurrect London icon must convince locals his goal isn't commercial