TAIYUAN, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) - Since he adopted the rundown building last year, Liu Jianyue has devoted most of his spare time to renovating the temple in Taiyuan city, capital of central China's Shanxi Province.
Under the deal with the local authority, Liu has the right to use the building for 30 years after committing 1.2 million yuan (about 180,000 U.S. dollars) to its renovation.
Shanxi has more than 28,000 old buildings of historic value, the most among China's provincial-level localities. But only about 3 percent of them are covered by government protection grants, despite recent increases in funding.
Last March, Shanxi began allowing individuals to "adopt" old buildings that had fallen into disrepair, channeling private capital into the protection of antiquities. Most of the buildings up for adoption are not old enough to be eligible for government protection.
Nearly a year into the program, 34 old buildings have been adopted and 14 of them renovated. Liu expects his work to be complete by the end of this year.
He plans to plant bamboo around the temple and turn it into a venue for practicing calligraphy, learning Chinese classics and Buddhist study.
"I plan to keep the temple in good condition for 30 years. I hope what I do could motivate more people to join the program," Liu said.
