From Building Rejuvenation to Local Regeneration—the Catalytic Effect Activated by “Fantasy Story Inc.” in Urban and Rural Area

• Main Authors: Ya-Chih Ko, 柯雅之
• Other Authors: Min-Jay Kang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2019
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/25n33x

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 建築與城鄉研究所 === 107 === Rejuvenating old buildings that incorporates culture and creativity is a trendy revitalization approach throughout Taiwan. In recent years, a number of individuals and groups have been involving in building rejuvenation and neighborhood regeneration. They activated a series of transformation at different localities, analogous to catalysts in chemical reactions. This research focuses on “Fantasy Story Inc.”, a ‘catalyst’ of urban regeneration in Taichung City, and zooms in to their practices in the neighborhood near the Calligraphy Greenway of Taichung and Shidianzi Old Street in Guanxi Township of Hsinchu County. Through qualitative research methods including interviews, participant observation, and internship ethnography, and with the review of the relevant literatures and the compilation of statistical data, the thesis boils down to three aspects: the emergence and transformation of the “catalyst”, the mechanisms operated by “catalyst” in urban and rural areas, and the impacts of the “catalyst” intervention in the process of urban regeneration and regional revitalization. The evidences reveal that as the motivator of building rejuvenation gradually shift from the government to the private sector, and the cultural and creative industries dominate the reuse program under the promotion of policies and the formation of consumer society, "catalyst" emerged. In the meanwhile, the demand of redevelopment has advanced from the urban district to the rural area, and the regeneration “catalyst” further morphs and reorganizes itself in response to different environmental contexts. On the basis of the theory of urban catalyst, five effects of Fantasy Story Inc. intervention were analyzed according to the analogy of chemical reaction, including “Facilitating”, ”Threshold-lowering”, “Motivating”, “Densification”, and ”Heating”. “Catalyst” mediates local resources and social relationship, and introduces cultural activities and creative industries in old buildings to activate the regeneration of the neighborhoods. As a catalyst, “Fantasy Story Inc.” intended to strengthen the cultural identity of the regenerated areas, and the economic effects in Taichung were more obvious than those of its rural counterpart. Yet in the course of urban regeneration, the price of local real estate was unsurprisingly boosted, and a landscape of consumption with a particular aesthetic appeal was fostered. The creative milieu engendered by the catalyst may also be detrimental to the diversity and authenticity of local culture and creativity. In Guanxi, however, the social effects activated by the “catalyst” were more perceivable. Via the intermediation of the catalyst, art and culture have become an opportunity for local regeneration. Linking governmental resources and local communities, the catalyst became a resource platform for regional revitalization.