Taipei inks deal to turn Zoo Mall site into ecological park

Taipei inks deal to turn Zoo Mall site into ecological park

2024-05-13

The land adjacent to Taipei Zoo is set for a dramatic transformation. The site, which was once home to the Zoo Mall, has stood idle for nearly a decade. Taipei has signed a deal with investors to turn it into an ecological park, complete with a themed hotel. According to Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, the project will drive visitor flow to nearby attractions, including the Taipei Zoo, the Maokong Gondola, and the Maokong Tea Garden.

Due to poor management, Zoo Mall was shut down during the tenure of former Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-pin. Its five buildings were demolished in 2014, and the land has been a conservation park since. The new project will be built on a budget of NT$4.5 billion. Construction is expected to be complete by 2033.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

Zoo mall用地變黃金! 台北動物園將蓋主題酒店

2024-05-13

台北動物園旁邊的原Zoo mall用地，閒置將近10年，北市府今天下午與投資人簽約，要在原本的廣場綠地升級變成生態園區酒店，未來環狀線也會通車到這邊，台北市長蔣萬安表示，這個開發案將結合三貓2.0計畫，以動物園貓熊、貓纜及貓空為意象，帶動整個文山區的經濟產業鏈。

原Zoo mall用地，在前市長郝龍斌任內，因經營不善成蚊子館，郝市府以建築有公安疑慮，2014年拆除5棟建物並闢成廣場綠地。北市府攜手開發商，斥資45億，希望打造全新遊樂場域，不過距離建造完成，預估要花至少9年的時間。

更多新聞內容，請鎖定：
民視台灣台（152頻道）週日至週五晚上9:30
民視新聞台（53頻道）週二至週六凌晨1:00

Related News

Interchange opens to link Freeway No. 1 and Provincial Highway 74

2024-05-13

Tsai confers medals of honor to administrative team

President Tsai Ing-wen presented medals to members of her administration on Monday, to thank them for their contributions to Taiwan. She reserved special honors for her vice president Lai Ching-te and former U.S. representative Hsiao Bi-khim, who will be sworn in as president and vice president next week. Tsai said she was confident that Lai, with his vision and commitment to the people, will achieve progress for Taiwan in the years ahead.

With just a week left to her term, President Tsai Ing-wen presented medals to members of her administration. She reserved a special honor for her vice president, Lai Ching-te.

Tsai Ing-wen
President
I want to thank Vice President Lai Ching-te for working alongside me in laying an important foundation for our nation’s development. I believe that his vision for the nation and his commitment to the people will bring even more progress and change in our nation’s next chapter. I want to once again thank every member of my administrative team for creating a globally recognized Taiwan. I believe that no matter where we go next, we will all continue to work hard for the nation.

Also on Monday, an official portrait of President-elect Lai was unveiled.

The image, the same one used in his presidential campaign, features his signature middle part and a slight smile. In the run-up to May 20, Lai’s Inauguration Day speech is also drawing attention. According to Congressional Research Service report, Lai intends to offer more of the same in cross-strait policy, and has assured Washington and even Beijing that he won’t pursue issues related to Taiwan independence, to avoid escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

Lai Shyh-bao
KMT lawmaker
For now it appears that his address will center on two points. The first is national unity. The other is promoting cross-strait peace. But when it comes to cross-strait affairs and extending goodwill, actions speak louder than words. How will he deal with the Taiwan independence clause in the DPP charter? As party chair, he could simply abolish it.

Chen Kuan-ting
DPP lawmaker
In public opinion polls, the percentage of people who want to maintain the status quo is always going up. Our administrative team hears this opinion loud and clear. We will do everything in our power to maintain Taiwan’s sovereignty while not provoking China. But when it comes to extending goodwill, it is our hope that China can respond in kind.

The stage is set for Lai’s Inauguration Day speech, and the world is watching closely for clues about Taiwan’s future.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

2024-05-13

Award-winning chocolatier embraces Taiwan with inauguration dessert

For the first time, the state banquet following the inauguration on May 20 is to be held outside of the capital, in Tainan. The menu is always a matter of interest, with this year’s dessert to be themed around international excellence. Made especially for the event, a Taipei chocolatier created a sesame oil and osmanthus flower chocolate inspired by sesame tangyuan, a classic Taiwanese dessert reinterpreted to share with the world.

Heated cream is poured into chocolate and mixed until a slight sheen appears. This is the key to melt-in-the-mouth confectioneries. Then comes the most important part: Taiwan’s own cold-pressed black sesame oil.

Cheng Yu-hsuan
Chocolatier
The pairing of black sesame represented by the sesame oil actually does an incredible job evoking flavor memories.

The unique and rousing dessert is to be the grand finale of President-elect Lai Ching-te’s inauguration banquet on May 20. Tucked inside is also osmanthus from Changhua, fortifying its strong association with Taiwanese culture.

Cheng Yu-hsuan
Chocolatier
When developing it, I discovered that osmanthus and sesame are both flavors with deeply held associations from eating osmanthus and sesame tangyuan. Taiwanese and visitors alike find it to be a combination that packs a punch.

When 36-year-old Cheng Yu-hsuan got the invitation to prepare a course for the banquet, he was named as Taiwan’s most refined dessert chef. But Cheng actually studied foreign languages in school, and only started learning to make chocolate at age 19. He later went to France to study and became the first Taiwanese to be named on 50 Next’s list of Gamechanging Producers. He’s also presented in the Salon du Chocolat Paris exhibition.

Cheng Yu-hsuan
Chocolatier
To me, chocolate is like the perfect bottle of perfume. You need to understand the different effects each component will create at each stage as it’s being eaten. The entire team has worked hard to evoke Taiwanese culture in each chocolate.

For 17 years, Cheng has been using chocolate to bring Taiwanese flavors to the world. Playing from the international excellence theme of this year’s dessert, he is sure to bring the inauguration banquet to the perfect conclusion.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

2024-05-13

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an to visit Tokyo Dome during 4-day Japan visit

2024-05-13

Taiwan to tighten PM2.5 standards amid lung cancer concerns

2024-05-13

Nantou tea gives ramen fresh kick for summer

2024-05-13

Blackouts affect nearly 8,000 users across Northern Taiwan

A series of power outages hit Northern Taiwan on Sunday, affecting nearly 8,000 users in three cities. Taipower said the blackouts were due to equipment breakdowns caused by hot and rainy weather. Power was restored for all customers in the early hours of Monday. With the summer season approaching, Taipower says it will continue routine inspections and repair vulnerabilities in its equipment. It’s also urging the public to conserve electricity.

Department store shoppers are caught off guard by the darkness. On Sunday evening, blackouts struck across Northern Taiwan, affecting users from New Taipei to Taoyuan to Hsinchu. Taipower said that thunderstorms were to blame.

Tsai Chih-meng
Taipower spokesperson
The hot weather and the sudden rain caused a situation in which our equipment was very prone to malfunctioning. We are very sorry for the inconvenience caused by the outages. Despite the thunderstorms, the staff here at Taipower did everything they could to complete repairs, restoring power for all in a little over two hours.

Emergency repairs restored power for all in the early hours of Monday. Taipower emphasized that equipment malfunctions were inevitable due to aging or external factors. But it said that outages had decreased over the years, from more than 20,000 incidents in 2012 to about 6,000 in 2023. That’s a reduction of more than 70%, it said. With summer approaching, Taipower said it would continue its routine inspections, to identify and repair vulnerabilities in its equipment.

Tsai Chih-meng
Taipower spokesperson
During the summer months, the greatest demand on electricity comes from air conditioning units, of course. Air-conditioning temperature settings, the additional use of fans, and filter cleaning are all actions that can drastically reduce power consumption and help save costs.

Taipower urged residential and commercial users to conserve during the summer months. High-consumption users are asked to shift operations to off-peak hours, to lower their own costs and to help ensure power stability.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

2024-05-13

Two Wowprime restaurants reopen after food poisoning cluster

2024-05-13

Third Japanese grilled burger chain sets up shop in Taiwan

2024-05-13

Malaysian educator and cultural advocate raises cross-cultural understanding

And now we meet educator and cultural advocate Ng Chor Soon. The Malaysian-born teacher has lived in Taiwan for 32 years, and built a thriving career teaching English and Malay. He first came to Taiwan to study, then met his future wife, and decided never to leave. He is passionate about creating transcultural understanding through education and exchange, offering his services to all those who want to foster deeper ties with Malaysia.

Whether the class has one student or 20, educator Ng Chor Soon is equally passionate. His extensive lesson planning enables students to learn through games and interactive exercises. Today’s class is all about “Malaysian New Year,” comparing Lunar New Year traditions in Malaysia and Taiwan.

Ng Chor Soon
Educator and Malaysian immigrant
Malay people in Malaysia wrap up their lucky money like this. This is called a “green envelope,” because that’s the lucky color.

Second-year student Tseng Yun-hsi has a Taiwanese father and a Chinese-Malaysian mother. When she visits family in Malaysia, she wants to be able to speak Malay with her relatives. She’s in her second year of studies with Ng.

Ng Chor Soon
Educator and Malaysian immigrant
I don’t do this for the money. It’s about passion and vision. I think that if I can teach children English, and at the same time promote new immigrant languages, and share with people that I’m from Malaysia, then what could be a greater joy?

Ng also offers professional training services in new immigrant issues and cultural diversity. He can often be seen on college campuses and at new immigrant events, serving up his delicious cooking or telling traditional Malaysian stories.

Ng Chor Soon
Educator and Malaysian immigrant
I always tell people, this dish is from my homeland and it’s called nasi lemak, coconut rice. “Nasi” means rice in Malay, and “lemak” is coconut milk.

Ng came to study in Taiwan in 1992. Then he married and built a career here. It’s been 32 years now. As a professional English teacher and cultural advocate, he jokes that his career is a “sparkling rich life” and a blessing from god.

Chen Yu-lin
Wife of Ng Chor Soon
Some people ask me, do you prefer sunny, rainy or cloudy days? I can categorically say “none of the above.” Having my husband here makes every day the best day. So I’m very grateful that he takes care of us, and for all his hard work and sacrifice for this family.

This story was provided by the program "We Are Family"
Funded by New Immigrant Development Fund

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

2024-05-13