Land-Use Politics Amid Land-Use Constraints: The Spatial Informality of Small Suburban Leisure Enterprises in Rural China

Ying Wang, Tin-Yuet Ting () and Eddie Chi Man Hui
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Ying Wang: Eurasia Art and Design School, Xi’an Eurasia University, Xi’an 710065, China
Tin-Yuet Ting: Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
Eddie Chi Man Hui: Department of Public and International Affairs, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 6, 1-20

Abstract: This article examines the land-use politics of recreation development in rural China. Extending the lens of spatial informality, it analyzes how the appropriation and acquisition of space by small suburban leisure enterprises have constituted a de facto vehicle for rural spatial reconfiguration amidst land-use constraints. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and case studies, we illuminate emerging scenarios in which inbound businesses burgeoned through the production of informal spaces, which were subsequently formalized or tolerated by local governments geared towards social economic growth. More so, we reveal the potential and limitations of such an informal-to-formal approach for rural spatial reconfiguration by showing how its sustainability and survival depend upon the enterprises’ ability to enter into a tacit alliance of interests with local authorities. This article casts new light on emerging bottom-up processes of spatial reconfiguration, alongside its repercussions for local suburbs, in the development of rural tourism and suburban leisure. It further suggests that, as an analytical approach, a nuanced understanding of rural restructuring under the recent national rural revitalization strategy can benefit from moving beyond the sole emphasis on formal institutions to analyze the role played by ordinary market actors and their spatial practices that shape rural territories and spatial relationships.

Keywords: land politics; spatial informality; leisure tourism; small enterprise; rural China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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