Tiantongyuan redevelopment set to improve lives

The sprawling suburban neighborhood in Beijing is getting a facelift to raise living standards. Xin Wen reports.

The region to the north of Beijing's Fifth Ring Road is dominated by Tiantongyuan, an enormous neighborhood reputed to be the largest residential area in Asia that houses approximately 700,000 people.

The area, which is home to more than 3 percent of the city's population, mainly migrant workers, is nicknamed "Sleeper Town" because a lack of amenities and entertainment facilities mean most of the residents only go there to rest.