China to Preserve Beijing Cultural Sites

The government has begun a project to save more than 100 cultural sites from the wrecking balls and bulldozers that are changing the capital’s face, according to an official report Monday.

In its rush to modernize, Beijing in recent years has thrown up large chrome-and-smoked-glass buildings along virtually every major thoroughfare. Critics say the construction craze is destroying the capital’s old charm.

The government’s five-year project includes work on the Old Summer Palace, in ruins since 1860, and the opening of more than 60 ancient buildings and museums.