In Jiangsu Province, China, a high-speed rail project valued at €4.5 billion suffered a significant delay due to a landowner's refusal to leave her home unless she was paid an exorbitant amount. Since 2020, construction has progressed rapidly, leaving only a nail house that has become the sole obstacle. While all the other neighbors accepted the government's offers, the owner, known as Aunt Zhang, intensified her payment demands, which initially stood at 100,000 yuan per square meter, eventually doubling her demand to 200,000 yuan during the process.
After two years of stagnation in construction, the local government decided to build a railway bridge on both sides of the house, isolating the property. Finally, the obstinate owner conceded and accepted the Government's conditions, thereby allowing the railway, scheduled to be inaugurated in 2024, to progress without further obstacles. With this outcome, the 'most stubborn house in Jiangsu' no longer interferes with the progress of one of the country's most ambitious railway infrastructure projects. The negotiation that ended in an agreement shows how the tensions between development and private property can play a crucial role in large infrastructure projects.
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