Taipei Mayoral Candidates Clash Over Urban Renewal and Workplace Safety Policies

During election campaigning and labor events organized by trade unions in Taipei, mayoral candidates Chiang Wan-an and Puma Shen presented their platforms on urban renewal and labor rights. Regarding worker welfare and safety, Chiang stated that the city's Department of Environmental Protection would raise night-shift allowances for sanitation workers. Addressing rising workplace safety incidents, Shen advocated recruiting more staff to strengthen labor inspections and protect inspectors' working conditions. Urban renewal strategy emerged as a central debate. Shen proposed an 'infinite urban renewal' model where residents move into ready transit housing via property swaps, allowing the city to acquire vacated sites for subsequent transit phases. Chiang detailed plans to facilitate urban renewal, including lowering the 5099 project threshold from 75% to 50%, raising base floor area ratios for large sites to 300%, and adding 105 personnel to accelerate municipal approvals.

Key takeaways

• Puma Shen proposed hiring more staff to strengthen labor inspections and reinforce protections for inspectors amid workplace safety concerns.
• Chiang Wan-an stated that the city's Environmental Protection Department would raise late-shift allowances for sanitation workers as a welfare measure.
• Shen presented an infinite urban renewal concept using transit housing property swaps to systematically cycle redevelopment.
• Chiang proposed lowering the 5099 project threshold, increasing base FAR to 300% for large sites, and adding 105 personnel to speed up approvals.