The ongoing Asian Winter Games has sparked a skiing boom in its host city of Harbin in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, with Yabuli, the venue for the Games' snow sports events, seeing a particularly high number of tourist arrivals.
Lasting from Feb. 7 to 14, the Games are proceeding in two competition zones, one in Harbin City and the other in Yabuli County of Harbin.
While two of Yabuli's six ski resorts are temporarily closed to serve as venues for the Games, the remaining four are fully operational and open to tourists.
One of these resorts has seen a record-breaking number of visitors this winter.
Usually, the number of visitors at the resort drops after the Spring Festival holiday, but it is not the case this year. Data showed that the resort is currently receiving around 20,000 visitors daily, a 20 percent increase from the same period last year.
Since the start of the skiing season in November 2024, it has welcomed a total of 900,000 visitors and set a single-day record of 32,000 visitors.
The Games has clearly ignited the public's passion for skiing and boosted the Yabuli's popularity, as it has attracted many beginners from southern China.
To cater to these newcomers, the ski resorts there have added four new beginner slopes and increased the number of ski instructors from 500 to 900.
With professional guidance, first-time skiers can quickly pick up the basics and enjoy the sport in just half a day.
The event also has greatly spurred the development of local rural tourism. Many guesthouses near ski resorts in Yabuli have been fully booked, with most rooms occupied until the Lantern Festival on Feb. 12.
Asian Winter Games ignites skiing frenzy in Harbin's Yabuli Ski Resort
Chicago policymakers have introduced measures to increase housing supply, in a move that local activists and construction industry stakeholders have hailed as key to easing affordability pressures on residents.
According to the city's 2025 annual report on homelessness, Chicago is facing its largest gap in affordable and available housing in a decade, with the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) Count estimating that 7,452 people were experiencing homelessness, either in shelters or unsheltered locations, on January 23, 2025.
Steven Vance, a social worker in Chicago, said policies that previously curbed the city's housing supply have pushed up rent costs amid demographic changes.
"Households are declining in size, and that means we need more homes, and I thought it was strange that we would artificially restrict how many homes could get built in Chicago. Right now in Chicago, we have one of the highest rent growths, compared year to year in the country, and so now is a pivotal time to allow more housing," he said.
To address the challenge, Chicago has introduced zoning and land-use reforms, including the Additional Dwelling Units (ADU) Ordinance, aimed at increasing residential density and expanding housing supply.
The ordinance effectively expands housing access across the city by allowing ADUs in attics, basements, and accessory buildings, easing the rent burden and creating more budget-friendly housing options.
"In December 2020, City Council adopted an ordinance that would legalize ADUs in five pilot areas. (With ADU,) rents will maybe not always come down, but they will not climb as quickly as they are now if we have more housing options," he said.
The construction sector in the city has welcomed the policy change, with builders jumping on the opportunity to create new structures. For many in the industry, boosting housing supply is not just about doing business, but about addressing the issue of affordability as Chicago residents themselves.
"The housing market in Chicago has been impacted by the ADU program, to me, in a really big way. It's enabled a lot more rental projects to be constructed. I want there to be more housing in Chicago. I think there is a need for that, and I think there's also a need for responsible development that maintains the character of the neighborhood. Affordable housing to me is a really important issue, and to me, the biggest denominator in affordable housing is the lack of supply. The best route to affordable housing is to have an influx of housing," said Nick Serra, a construction professional.
Chicago expands housing supply to ease affordability pressure
