ABSTRACT
Densification is not only one justification for the site choice of the Expo but also a crucial means to balance the finance for land clearance and property dispossession through compulsory purchase. Continuous land dispossession and commodification is essential to sustain the economic growth and finance public spending. In the Chinese context, planning is to serve the interests of pursuing rapid economic growth and legitimating the expansion of territorial control by the state. By pushing up density of resettlement housing, it can potentially increase the supply of land for construction. Regulations have been revised in a way that is consistent with the imperatives of maximizing economic returns through land development and expanding the role of the market while maintaining political control. Owing to the rural-urban divide and the resultant dualistic land ownership, regulations with regard to property expropriation also differ in terms of procedures, compensation standards and legal remedies.
