The 149 homeowners in Beijing's Furun Residential Compound won a landmark lawsuit against the city's urban planning commission on July 9 in the Haidian District Court.

The owners accused the commission of illegally permitting a real estate developer to use a piece of land within the compound to build a commercial bathhouse instead of the planned kindergarten that was originally registered with the commission.

In August 2003, the homeowners discovered that the planned No. 7 building would not be used as a kindergarten. It wasn't until November of that year that they learned that the commission had approved the change in the intended use of the land in December 2002 at the request of the developer that built the compound.

Commercial bathhouses are popular in China and are usually profitable. They serve as places to relax and socialize as well as to bathe.

On March 11, 2004, the homeowners at Furun filed a lawsuit against the Beijing Municipal Commission of Urban Planning, accusing the commission of misusing its power by enabling the developer to change the plan.

The commission claimed its approval was given in accordance with the law, as its examination of papers submitted by the developer showed proper endorsements from such departments as firefighting and environmental protection. Moreover, the Haidian District education commission had submitted a written suggestion that the kindergarten plan was inappropriate because it did not meet the minimum space requirements.

The Haidian District Court found that the commission had failed to set a period in which to provide evidence supporting its decision. The omission rendered its decision invalid.

It is not rare in Chinese cities -- particularly in Beijing, which is in the midst of the biggest housing boom in the nation -- for developers to show buyers attractive residence designs but later to change planned landscaped areas and public welfare facilities into commercial buildings.

(Xinhua News Agency July 12, 2004)