Mr. Yao's investment of more than 10 million yuan in the water project was originally opened with the support of multiple functional departments. As a result, after only one year of operation, the water park was found to have illegal land use, and after three years of punishment, it was found to have illegally occupied land, and all ground appurtenances had to be confiscated.
The reporter's investigation found that the seeds of illegal activities had been planted in the land use procedures before the project started.
origin
was found by the local government as a "pick-up man" Party A to solve the land transfer costs in the first 5 years
Mr. Yao invested more than 10 million yuan to build Bishuiwan Water Park, located in the mountains of Huanglong County, Shaanxi Province, 40 minutes' drive from the county seat. This place is backed by a mountain on one side, and there is a clear stream at the bottom of the mountain, which adds a lot of idyllic atmosphere to the park. But the park was overgrown with weeds, the oversized wooden platform in front of the visitor center was covered in dust, and the pool was badly cracked around it. Mr. Yao showed reporters the past glory of the park, but now he can only rely on photos and videos stored in his mobile phone......
The paradise is overgrown with weeds
What is the reason for the abandonment of a park that has been in operation for 4 years? Mr. Yao also couldn't understand how the project was very supportive from top to bottom at the beginning, but how did it end up being illegal land?
Mr. Yao, a native of Yichuan, Shaanxi Province, has been working on housing construction projects in Huanglong County more than ten years ago. In 2016, a company transferred 106 acres of land to the masses in Wumen Village, Qitai Township, Huanglong County, and invested in the construction of a breeding and sightseeing tourism project, after which the project somehow retreated. "At that time, the land in circulation had been so badly damaged that it was impossible for ordinary people to farm. In 2017, in order to quickly solve the problem of land transfer fees for the people, the government of Qitai Township approached me and introduced our company (Huanglong County Jinping Ecotourism Investment Co., Ltd., hereinafter referred to as Jinping Ecological Company) in the form of investment promotion in the form of "Dananchuan Pastoral Complex in Huanglong County, Qitai Township", and carried out project investment and development. ”
On November 2, 2017, on behalf of the Company, Mr. Yao signed the Investment Promotion Contract for Bishuiwan Water Park Project with Huanglong County Rural Tourism Investment and Development Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the "Rural Tourism Company"). The reporter saw from the contract provided by Mr. Yao that Party A is a rural tourism company, and Party B is Jinping Ecological Company. Party A and Party B signed the contract on matters related to the construction of the water park project in Qitai Village, Qitai Township.
According to the company's public information, Huanglong County Rural Tourism Investment and Development Co., Ltd. was registered in November 2016 and cancelled in May 2019. The sole legal person shareholder of the enterprise is the Huanglong County State-owned Assets Management Center. After inquiry, the center is a subordinate institution of the Huanglong County Finance Bureau.
Mr. Yao still believes that Party A on the contract is a company run by the Qitai Township Government. Because all the things related to the project with him are the leaders of the Yutai Township Government, and the leaders will do whatever they say. "There is also an agreement in the contract that in addition to investing in construction projects, I don't have to worry about running various approval procedures. ”
The contract stipulates that Party A shall coordinate and deal with the civil disputes and other related matters involved in the construction process of the project; Party A shall circulate for 30 years at the market price of 800 catties of corn per mu (not less than 500 yuan) for Party B's use, and the circulation cost shall be borne by Party B, and Party A shall support and solve the land circulation cost in the first 5 years; Party A shall do a good job in the "three links and one leveling" of the project (i.e., road pass, water pass, electricity pass, The site is leveled), assist in the relevant procedures in the construction, and the costs involved shall be borne by Party B; Party A shall provide Party B with 4 brick-concrete office rooms free of charge...... What Mr. Yao, as Party B, has to do is: from the date of obtaining the land provided by Party A, start construction in strict accordance with the requirements of the project planning and design document, and complete the construction of the project within the specified time limit (before June 15, 2018) to ensure that the total investment reaches more than 10 million yuan and is put into use.
Jiancheng
The county finance bureau acts as a guarantee bank for lending, and the land management department participates in the investigation
According to the contract, Jinping Ecological Company, with the assistance of the Qitai Township Government, submitted relevant information to the Huanglong County Economic Development Bureau, the Natural Resources Bureau, the Administrative Examination and Approval Service Bureau and other departments.
The reporter saw on a "project record confirmation" issued by the Huanglong County Economic Development Bureau, the name of the project is the first phase of the Dananchuan Pastoral Complex in Huanglong County, the project unit is Jinping Ecological Company, the construction site is in the county's Dananchuan, with a total investment of 30 million yuan, the construction scale and content include: theme fountains, national standard swimming pools, small speakers, passionate and happy water villages, etc., supporting tourist service centers, comprehensive business rooms, computer rooms, sanitary toilets, road hardening, greening, lighting facilities, etc.
Mr. Yao said: "This set of materials for running the water park was also submitted to the Land and Resources Bureau (now the Natural Resources Bureau), and our company prepared the materials and the Yutai Township Government sent someone to do it. ”
In 2018, the project started construction in full swing. During this period, the government also built a flushing toilet, built a bridge and hardened the road. At the end of 2018, the first phase of the project was completed. "In May 2019, due to a shortage of funds, there was no money to buy equipment, and the park could not open as scheduled. Mr. Yao told the Gale News reporter of Huashang Daily that Bishuiwan Water Park was officially put into operation on June 7, 2019 with the support and attention of many units in Huanglong County. "At that time, the benefits were very good, from the beginning of the construction to the opening, many leaders came to inspect, research, feel that this tourism project is good, but also solve the employment of the local people, and drive the sales of agricultural products of the surrounding people. ”
The former water park attracted a large number of tourists
According to the website of the People's Government of Huanglong County, there are 5 related news from the establishment of the water park project to the opening of the park. Two of them were led by relevant leaders to investigate the project, and the earliest one was on May 16, 2018, when the heads of nearly 10 relevant units in the county, including the Land Bureau (now the Natural Resources Bureau), participated. On July 10, 2019, the Huanglong County Financial Media Center promoted the Bishuiwan Water Park through a news platform, which mentioned that the completion of the water park not only fills the gap in water projects in Huanglong and surrounding counties, but also drives the development of the local economy, and can also provide 80 jobs for the local people. Mr. Yao, as the person in charge of the water park, said in the publicity report: "The next step will be to build an indoor swimming pool, Happy Dachongguan and Shenlongyu Flower Sea 6 kilometers rafting, after the completion of the project will add color to the Huanglong tourism water project, and inject new vitality into the global tourism." At this time, Mr. Yao was looking forward to the construction of the second phase of the park.
According to Mr. Yao's plan, an indoor heated swimming pool would have been built here
违法
However, the approval for the construction of a water park is a procedure for "facility agricultural land".
In March 2020, just one summer after the park was completed, Mr. Yao was informed by the Bureau of Natural Resources that there was illegal land use for the water park project.
At the beginning of 2020, the Huanglong County Bureau of Natural Resources determined that the water park occupied collective farmland without authorization and would be fined 30,000 yuan. Mr. Yao denied it: "Our company is the land subcontracted from the Qitai Township Government, and the land use procedures were also handled by the Qitai Township Government. Mr. Yao said that under the coordination of the leaders of the Qitai Township Government, he finally paid the fine, and the Qitai Township Government privately made up the money for the fine.
But Mr. Yao has another statement, the superior of the land management department photographed the illegal land use here through the way of law enforcement of the film, and was fined 150,000 yuan at that time, and under the coordination of Yutai Township and relevant departments, it was finally determined that 2,000 square meters of illegal land occupation was punished with a penalty of 30,000 yuan, which is to give the superior an explanation. And promised him that he could continue to operate as usual after the penalty. This reporter has not been confirmed, but the penalty of 30,000 yuan is well documented.
After the fine, in the summers of 2021 and 2022, the water park was indeed operating normally. It was only in 2021 that Mr. Yao received two calls from the land department of Huanglong County, both of which hoped that he could buy the land for the water park. Mr. Yao rejected the offer to buy the land. In January 2023, he was told that the water park illegally occupied a total of more than 46,000 square meters.
In the approval procedures provided by Mr. Yao, the reporter found that on July 10, 2018, the Huanglong County Land and Resources Bureau issued a filing procedure to Jinping Ecological Company for agricultural land for planting and breeding facilities. According to the filing notice, the "Application for the Filing of Facility Agricultural Land" and relevant information submitted by Jinping Ecological Company for the agricultural land of the Dananchuan Complex Planting and Breeding Facility in Yutai Township and the relevant information were received, and after review, the facility agricultural land project met the requirements for land use filing and was recorded.
The reporter learned that the facility agricultural land refers to the land for the production facilities of factory crop cultivation or aquaculture. Land for production facilities refers to the land for facilities directly used for the production of agricultural products within the agricultural project area. In other words, the construction of water parks is not allowed on facility agricultural land. If a water park is built, the land use procedures must go through the procedures for the right to use the construction land.
"It's a lie to say that they don't know what I'm building for such a big stall. Mr. Yao thinks he has jumped into a pit dug by someone else.
In the summer of 2023, the water park will not be able to operate as usual. Because on January 11, the Huanglong County Bureau of Natural Resources issued an administrative penalty decision to him, and the water park was found to have illegally occupied 46,213 square meters, and the buildings and other facilities on the illegal land should be confiscated and demolished on his own.
A water park that has been abandoned
Mr. Yao hired a lawyer to represent him, and he filed an administrative reconsideration. On July 21, 2023, the Huanglong County Bureau of Natural Resources revoked the administrative penalty decision on the grounds that "after review, it was found that the handling procedures were improper". On August 22, 2023, the bureau revoked the filing of facility agricultural land that had been handled for Jinping Ecological Company. The reason was that Jinping Ecological Company had changed the use of the land without authorization.
"The park has been in operation for several years, and now they say that it will be revoked, I don't know what they want to cover up?" said Mr. Yao, who said that the information submitted to them at the beginning was very clear, that is, to build a water park, but why was it approved for the filing procedures of facility agricultural land. In this regard, Mr. Yao filed an administrative reconsideration. On November 9, 2023, the Huanglong County Administrative Reconsideration Authority revoked the "Decision to Revoke the Filing Notice of Facility Agricultural Land" made by the Bureau of Natural Resources because the Bureau of Natural Resources applied the wrong basis. The agency believes that the Bureau of Natural Resources issued the "Notice on the Revocation of the Filing of Agricultural Land for the Planting and Breeding Facilities of the Dananchuan Pastoral Complex in Yutai Township" in accordance with the "Notice on Standardizing the Management of Facility Agricultural Land for Facility Agricultural Land in the Province and Promoting the Healthy Development of Facility Agriculture", and the document on which it is based is valid for five years, and the document has become invalid when the notice of revocation of the record is made.
Response
Huanglong County Bureau of Natural Resources: It is fairest for Mr. Yao to go through the judicial process
On September 12, 2023, the reporter learned about the situation at the Huanglong County Natural Resources Bureau. The relevant person in charge of the bureau said that to go through the land use procedures, the procedure is to go to the National Development and Reform Commission (Economic Development Bureau) to handle the project first, and then go to the land department to go through the land use procedures with the relevant approval materials for the project. When the reporter asked "why do you still approve the procedures for facility agricultural land because it is clear that the project approval is a water park", he answered the question, emphasizing that they approved the facility agricultural land, and did not let him (referring to Mr. Yao) engage in permanent construction, nor did they approve the land use procedures for the water park.
The person in charge pointed to the survey drawings of the "Technical Report on the Land Survey and Demarcation of the Phase I Project of the Dananchuan Pastoral Complex in Qitai Township" and said that the three plots of land for the water park marked on the drawings belong to construction land, and there is a land transfer contract for the use of this plot, and the facility agricultural land approved by the bureau for him is in places other than these three plots. But it is clear that he built on a plot of land for construction, which is illegal.
The reporter's investigation found that the first phase of Mr. Yao's water park had been completed at the end of 2018, and when he invested in the construction, the plot was not changed to construction land. According to a document from the Shaanxi Provincial People's Government on the approval of land documents, the "Reply on the Second Batch of Agricultural Land Conversion and Land Acquisition in Huanglong County in 2018" mentioned that on July 29, 2019, with the research and consent of the Provincial People's Government, 1.9420 hectares of collective agricultural land in the relevant village group of Qitai Village, Qitai Township, Huanglong County were converted into construction land. In other words, when the construction of the water park was in full swing, the Bureau of Natural Resources began to apply for a change in the nature of the land here. After getting the land and converting it into construction land, I will find Mr. Yao to handle the land transfer contract, which is to buy land.
The person in charge also said that at the beginning of the construction of Mr. Yao's water park, both the bureau and the institute (the Bureau of Natural Resources and the Land Institute) must have investigated and enforced the law, and he must have discovered his illegal acts and imposed penalties, which are well documented. However, he also said that not long after he was transferred, some of the people who approved the procedures retired or some left their posts, and besides, the township government has the responsibility to inform the enterprises of the land policy when attracting investment. It is suggested that Mr. Yao should go through the judicial process to be the fairest for Mr. Yao.
According to the relevant person in charge of Qitai Township, this problem had already arisen when he was transferred. In terms of procedures, the Bureau of Natural Resources approved the procedures for facility agricultural land, and it is also very clear that it is planting and breeding industry, not construction land, and he (Mr. Yao) built a water park, which is illegal. According to the 2018 policy, the project was approved by the county. At that time, the land did not need to go through bidding, auction and listing (bidding, auction, listing), but only needed to transfer the land from the hands of the masses. But for such a large project, it is impossible for the functional departments not to know when it is built, knowing that the procedures are not right, and there are so many units to support it.
The person in charge of Qitai Township analyzed that it is also possible that the functional departments do not understand the land use policy. According to him, the Bureau of Natural Resources has made a remedy, and around 2019, the bureau applied to the province to convert the land into construction land, trying to get Mr. Yao to buy the land through bidding, auction and listing, so that the land use procedures for the park are legal, but it will cost millions of yuan to buy the land. After Mr. Yao refused, the Bureau of Natural Resources imposed a penalty and confiscation decision in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations on illegal occupation of facility agricultural land. In this regard, the county has also held several coordination meetings, and there are two parts to talk about compensation, one is the loss of Mr. Yao's business in 2023, and the other is that if the water park is completely gone, then Mr. Yao will lose more money.
On November 30, 2023, the Huanglong County Bureau of Natural Resources issued an administrative penalty notice to Jinping Ecological Company, and on December 20 of the same year, the administrative penalty decision was also sent, and this time, the identified illegal land was again 18,797.65 square meters...... Mr. Yao looked at the administrative notices and administrative punishments like snowflakes, and felt a little crying: "How can the projects supported by so many units become illegal?"
Huashang Daily Gale News reporter Miao Qiaoying K25