Zhubei City market renovation controversy

Political controversy has emerged in Zhubei City, Taiwan, regarding the fiscal management of the Zhubei East District Market renovation project. Critics, including mayoral candidate Chiu Chen-yuan and Hsinchu County Councilor Lin Shuo-yen, have pointed to a significant decline in the city’s accumulated surplus, which reportedly dropped from 3.19 billion TWD in 2022 to approximately 1.7 billion TWD by the end of 2025.

A central point of contention is the project budget, which critics claim surged from 550 million TWD to 1.4 billion TWD following Mayor Cheng Chao-fang’s decision to redesign the market after taking office in late 2022. The new design, intended to increase the floor area ratio through a multi-story waterfront concept, has been accused of causing four years of stagnation and wasting over 10 million TWD in construction materials.

While opponents characterize the redesign as a “dynasty-style” governance approach that discards previous plans for political marks, the Zhubei City Office maintains the overhaul was necessary because the original plan utilized only 30% of the available floor area ratio. As of 2026, the project remains in the bidding preparation stage, having missed its original completion target of September 2024.