Chinese cities are turning quarantine centers built during the pandemic into affordable housing units for young workers — an attempt to help those who struggle in the current economic slowdown.
Chinese cities are turning quarantine centers into affordable housing for workers ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A year ago today, China lifted its strict COVID restrictions. A key symbol of that period is the quarantine centers built in nearly every major Chinese city. They came to represent the collective trauma from mass testing and sudden lockdowns. But as NPR's Emily Feng discovers, 12 months on, cities are turning these huge centers into affordable housing units for young workers, an attempt to help those who struggle in the current economic slowdown. EMILY FENG, BYLINE: Today, walk around this brightly painted high-talents apartment in Beijing, and you see scenes of normality, like this shared canteen serving affordably priced meals. But just over a year ago, these apartments were used very differently - as a medical triage and quarantine facility. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Non-English language spoken). FENG: This is a video Beijing resident Hudson Li shot last year as he was being driven by health care workers into a Fangcang, the Chinese term for these hastily built quarantine centers. HUDSON LI: (Through interpreter) It wasn't very cold yet, but they told me to pack my belongings. FENG: Beijing alone built 23 of these makeshift facilities, designed to hold up to 23,000 people at a time. Less than two months after Li was quarantined, Beijing lifted most of its COVID restrictions.…