The Taipei city government has encouraged the rebuilding of low-to-mid-rise residential buildings in the city that are 30 years or more old through financial and technical assistance programs. The move, however, has drawn questions and criticism from the Ministry of the Interior and lawmakers. The critics have expressed doubts that the city government's plan can work and have claimed that it could, on the contrary, fuel the surging residential housing prices, which are already too high. However, the plan is an innovative move that has imagination and guts, given the fact that under a free and democratic system, urban renewal in Taiwan is a complicated, constantly changing and hard-to-control process. The makeover plan is worthy of support from the points of view of improving the capital city's overall look and elevating the quality of living for residents. Taipei is a rather unattractive city compared with other metropolises around the world. The numerous old residential buildings -- many of them built in the same period of time to a uniform design -- not only make the city look tired, but the outdated road system and utilities also prevent its residents from enjoying a quality of life equal to those in other modern cities. The city government's makeover plan is worthy of central government encouragement and support, as the plan will provide residents with an opportunity to renovate their own residences, help facilitate a facelift for the run down-looking metropolis, and indirectly help arrest the spiralling housing prices. Better late than never, but if the plan is procrastinated over for too long, it will be too late for the city to rejuvenate itself. (April 30, 2010). 