Street chiefs leading the way to a more beautiful capital city

Up to 20,000 Beijing's street chiefs will be on duty by the end of September as part of an effort to improve the management of the city, municipal authorities said.

The capital recruited nearly 20,000 hutong chiefs, who were previously the leaders of subdistrict and township governments, according to the city's management commission.

The street chiefs will also join in a related training process to improve the city's minor streets and hutong in the capital's central areas.

Liu Zhaoping, who has been a hutong chief on Shuangqigan road near Desheng street in Xicheng district for half a year, said she was able to solve some environmental problems after noticing them in her community. For example, she straightens up disordered bicycle parking, removes small advertisements and picks up trash that was dropped carelessly.

"I will maintain regular communication with citizens in the neighborhood to meet their demands," she said. "The shops within the community are also a key point that we need to pay attention to. We try our best to keep the environment tidy and clean in the neighborhood."

Desheng street also opened a WeChat account for hutong chiefs to update their zones'information daily.

Liu Yuchao, street chief of Erlong street on Jinrongjie like the digital updates. He also started a WeChat group for members in the community to communicate information.

"When the chiefs find a problems, they will resolve it with the group, which enhances work efficiency to a large degree," he said.

The chiefs in four districts in Beijing－including Dongcheng, Xicheng, Shijingshan and Yanqing districts－also owned phones equipped by the local government. Phones for the hutong chiefs in Pinggu district will also be assigned soon to Pinggu district, a northeastern suburb of Beijing.

A regular monthly meeting will be held in Dongcheng district to discuss the problems that hutong chiefs find, and to supervise their daily performance.

Last April, a three-year action plan was released by Beijing's housing commission, to manage the minor hutong and streets in the capital's central area.

Yan Jianfeng, director of regulation for the municipal urban management commission, said the aim is to turn the capital environment into a better place by creating a long-term management mechanism.

There are 2,435 minor streets and hutong altogether in the capital's central area, with 1,674 still to be improved, Yan said. The action plan requires hutong and streets to be free of illegal advertisements, have no road damage, house no illegal businesses and be free of random garbage dumping.

"It's important to appoint hutong chiefs to protect the capital's appearance, improve the living environment and raise urban management standards," he said.

Cai Qi, the Party chief of the capital, said in a meeting last year that meticulous management will strengthen the management of minor streets and hutong.

The central area will also be part of a mechanism to make the city cleaner, Cai said.

In the future, a training process will be applied to districts in the capital, expanding to more fields, such as garbage classification, the city's city management department said.

Community workers and hutong chiefs clean up a lane in Beixinqiao of Dongcheng district, Beijing, in April.