China demolishes mountain villa on top of tower block

Photo: The Daily Mail

The lesson is a valuable one for all property developers: never build a fortress on top of a block of flats if you do not have planning permission. Zhang Lin, unfortunately, had to learn the lesson the hard way.

The wealthy professor had amassed a fortune in medicine before deciding to use those funds to create his dream super-penthouse overlooking Beijing. The estate includes fake hills, a karaoke bar and even a swimming pool.

Lin assembled the materials slowly over a period of six years, quietly carrying supplies up to the roof, including boulders, trellises and shrubberies to decorate the carefully landscaped utopia – and metal supports to stop the whoel thing collapsing into the apartment below.

It soon turned out, though, that the 8,000 square-foot extension to the tower was completely illegal. Yes, even the karaoke parlour.

Photo: How Hwee Young/EPA (The Guardian)

Lin reportedly ignored complaints from the other residents of the luxury complex, who experienced problems such as burst pipes and cracked walls. Authorities did not stop the loud construction, though, even when several neighbours moved out.

“One next-door neighbour was reportedly beaten up after he confronted Mr. Zhang about the project,” adds The New York Times.

Officials at the time said they had experienced difficulty in getting hold of Mr. Zhang, adding that he had evaded them or prevented them from entering the apartment.

“If we can’t calculate the scope of this illegal construction, we can’t issue a notice requiring him to dismantle it,” authorities told The New York Times.

Photo: The People's Daily

Authorities eventually issued an order to Mr. Zhang in August to provide evidence that he had legally constructed the villa, or remove it within 15 days.

Some attributed the action to the attention the project had generated online, with Sina Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, celebrating the demolition of the illegal property.

“It's the power of the public voice and freedom of information. It has been six years, this Zhang person was not afraid of the city enforcements, officials, or even law, but he's afraid of public supports, afraid of Weibo!” one user is quoted by Sky News.

Now, in October, the mountain fortress is finally being dismantled.

Photo: The People’s Daily (via Gizmodo)

“Now I realize it was a huge mistake,” Lin said.