Beijing will move its municipal government offices to Tongzhou in an effort to reduce pollution and traffic congestion in the city center, Chinese andforeign media are reporting.
Although not finalized, the move would be part of a two-pronged plan by both the central government and the municipal government to restructure the area. Beijing is looking to improve conditions in the center of the city, while the central government wants to more closely integrate Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei province.
Tongzhou lies east of central Beijing and is connected by bus and subway lines. One area that may be developed specifically for government use is Lucheng, now the eastern terminus of Beijing Subway Line 6, currently home to little more than a baseball field, and not far from the Hebei province bedroom community of Yanjiao.
Beijing municipality, which is directly administered by the central government, covers almost 16,500 square kilometers, giving the municipal government considerable leeway in choosing an alternate location for government offices.
Tongzhou real estate prices have already begun spiking on discussion of the move.