Racing Towards Modernization, Vietnam's Past Is Threatened

"Paris has the Eiffel Tower. New York has the Empire State Building. Both are symbols of global cities, recognizable currency of power and prestige.

Now the master builders of Vietnam's commercial showcase are racing to put their stamp on tomorrow's skyline. Glass and steel buildings are already sprouting across the city and by 2009, a 68-story skyscraper, designed to invoke the lotus flower and the ao dai worn by Vietnamese women, promises to be this city's Sears Tower.

But in a city struggling to update its creaking infrastructure and keep its historical core intact, critics say the breakneck speed of expansion could spell a slow death for the unique character of a city once known as the Pearl of the Orient.

Government planners say they want to maintain the essence of the graceful colonial city laid out by French architects in the 19th century. So far, 108 historic buildings have been listed for preservation, and plans are afoot to build a new financial district apart from the old city to satisfy demand for office space.

"The colonial period wasn't good for everything. But for urban planning, it was definitely good.... It's not a problem for us to have buildings that are 30 or 40, even 60 stories, as long as you don't have a conflict between our heritage and the new buildings," says Anh Tu Hoang, a director at the University of Architecture in Ho Chi Minh City.

But dozens of concrete tower blocks have begun to peep above the low-rise skyline, as real estate developers do an end-run around lax zoning laws. And this leaves many wondering which vision of the future will triumph: a planned urban renewal or an unchecked boom that turns Ho Chi Minh City into another sprawling Asian metropolis."