Part of the building on 18 East Zhongshan No 1 Road will be turned into a gallery. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY

Latest statistics from the Shanghai Municipal Housing and Urban-rural Development Commission show that the city has roughly 25 million square meters of historical buildings that have been around for more than 50 years. More than one-third of these buildings are old Shanghai-style residential houses located in traditional alleys, including old villas and shikumen homes.

Apart from protecting the facade of heritage buildings, authorities should also improve living conditions by creating independent kitchens and bathrooms and increasing space for each household, said political advisor Ye Guohui.

Pan Xiangli, a local political advisor and writer, suggested that the protection efforts could also be extended to people. She expressed hope that urban management authorities could adopt a more tolerant attitude toward vendors selling gardenias and white orchids who are not impeding traffic.

"Shanghai has a long history of having such vendors. They are a part of authentic Shanghai life and visitors should be given a chance to experience this," she said.

zhouwenting@chinadaily.com.cn