Want to rent an affordable flat in one of China’s former pop-up Covid hospitals? Why some people are not so keen

Beijing residents ask whether conversions are a good use of public money or a needless reminder of the trauma brought on by zero-Covid policy

For US$170 per month, some agents are offering a unit with a private bathroom and allow pets

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The Colourful Community in Beijing used to be a temporary pandemic hospital but in September was converted into affordable housing. Photo: Yuanyue Dang

Published: 6:00am, 3 Dec 2023Updated: 8:25am, 3 Dec 2023

On a chilly afternoon in late November, 16-year-old Bruce finished his morning shift at a coffee shop in a busy shopping district in Beijing and returned to his unusual rented flat in the northeastern suburbs of China’s capital.

The 18 square metre flat that Bruce (not his real name) lives in was once a temporary Covid-19 hospital. It resembles a standard room in a cheap hotel with a single bed, air conditioning, a TV and a bathroom.

A converted flat in the Colourful Community. Photo: SCMP

It still contains clues to its original role. Buildings were assembled from containers, wire fences remain outside and the occasional medical waste bag and Covid-19 slogan are visible.

The residential area is the size of 20 football pitches and looks like Lego blocks painted in seven colours. As a residential complex it retains the name it was given as a pandemic facility – the Colourful Community.

“This used to be a makeshift Covid hospital, but it was left unused after the pandemic,” said an employee of the state-owned housing company that manages the Colourful Community.

The sudden transformation of the site into low-rent housing by the local government in September has sparked much debate on Chinese social media, with some praising it as a smart move. Others said it revived traumatic memories of the strict zero-Covid policy that affected livelihoods and movement for so many Chinese.

Want to rent an affordable flat in one of China’s former pop-up Covid hospitals? Why some people are not so keen

Beijing residents ask whether conversions are a good use of public money or a needless reminder of the trauma brought on by zero-Covid policy For US$170 per month, some agents are offering a unit with a private bathroom and allow pets

Beijing residents ask whether conversions are a good use of public money or a needless reminder of the trauma brought on by zero-Covid policy

For US$170 per month, some agents are offering a unit with a private bathroom and allow pets