The statistics paint a stark picture. In the 1950s, Beijing was home to 7,000 hutongs. But by the 1980s, their numbers had shrunk to 3,900, and they have been vanishing at annual rate of 600 ever since, according to a report by the China Architecture News.

In a similar vein, the Dali municipal government of southwest China's Yunnan Province destroyed a segment of a 1,300-year-old city wall to make place for a new expressway this May.

The administrator said he is strongly opposed to the notions of "revamping old city" and "revamping old and endangered housing" in urban development.

Such development, he added, often comes at the expense of architecture that dates back "hundreds even thousands of years".

Shan said some small- and medium-sized Chinese cities have been blindly transforming their urban landscapes in favor of high-rises and skyscrapers as futuristic symbols of urbanization and modernization.

But this push has rendered all too many cityscapes "rigid, superficial and dull", he said.

Shan also criticized the wasted of resources caused by the short-lived nature of many buildings in China.

The average lifespan of a Chinese building is 30 years, as opposed to 132 years in Britain and 74 years in the United States, according to statistics.

"Many buildings have been demolished while still remaining useful," he added, blaming the situation on a lack of vision by urban administrators. "And that is a disaster for both the environment and resources."

(China Daily Aug 4, 2010)