Treasure Hill (宝藏岩), located in the Gongguan Commercial District (公馆商圈), is a unique historical landscape where artists take part in a residency programs and large numbers of visitors explore the village-like enclave on weekends and holidays. Work on a new facility, the Treasure Hill Eco Corridor (宝藏岩生态廊道), mapped out by the city’s Department of Urban Development (台北市政府都市发展局), was completed in July and now on Treasure Hill you can enjoy not only culture, but nature as well.
The eco corridor, which has an area of 2,500 square meters, is located on the south side of Treasure Hill in Yongfu Park (永福公园), straddling Wansheng Stream (万盛溪), beside its confluence with the Xindian River (新店溪). The Department of Urban Development has covered the slopes of the bio-friendly corridor with grass, created a dragonfly-friendly habitat along the stream’s banks, and planted floating primrose, small shellflower, and other hydrophilic plants. Thus an urban Shangri-la of interwoven greens and bright colors has been given life.
Many are curious as to how Treasure Hill happens to be home to such a rich natural eco-treasure. The Department of Urban Development says that squirrels, kingfishers, and dragonflies are common on Treasure Hill, and that it hopes to add to the bio-friendly corridor and dragonfly habitat in the future with the reintroduction of such indicator species as the little egret, common moorhen, Eiffinger’s tree frog, grey treepie, and red-bellied tree squirrel, presenting even more Treasure Hill treasures for visitors to enjoy.
The department has been fastidious in its methods to enrich the local ecology. For example, it has used water-permeable materials, debris caging (instead of rock berms), and planted high grass in the top part of the site to merge into the original tree cover. To increase the wetland area and create a habitat for dragonflies, a new strip about 1.5 meters wide featuring hydrophilic plants such as floating primrose and red hot polygonum was created along the land/water exchange zone.
Next time you visit Treasure Hill, in addition to enjoying the distinctive architecture of the local homes and the many attractive works by its resident artists, don’t forget to take a stroll through the eco corridor, which has brought to the area a wonderful balance of culture and ecology, art and nature.
Information
Treasure Hill Eco Corridor 宝藏岩生态廊道
Add: The south side of Treasure Hill Artist Village (2, Aly. 14, Ln. 230, Sec. 3, Tingzhou Rd. 汀州路3段230巷14弄2号)
Tel: 1999 ext. 8286 (outside Taipei City, dial (02) 2720-8889 ext. 8286)
Transportation: Take Exit 1 at MRT Gongguan Station, walk approximately 10 minutes along Tingzhou Road. For bicyclists riding along Xindian River, Treasure Hill is immediately off the bike path.