Many residents still live in the Mingde New Village, making it a kind of "living museum."
Veteran's villages are a prominent part of Taiwan's history. Sixty years ago these villages were created as temporary shelters for families of military personnel that came to Taiwan. In 1949, the Republic of China retreated to Taiwan and people came from almost every province in China. Many came with wives and children and needed housing, so veteran's villages were built all over Taiwan. Gangshan village was developed for the air forces, Cianjhen village housed the army and Zuoying village the Navy. At that time the military believed they would soon retake the Mainland, so housing was originally only temporary. Communities began to develop their own dynamic culture and over half a century later they now embrace this land they now call home.
In Zuoying, officers lived in large housing previously constructed by the Japanese. Houses were then constructed for the lower ranking marines. However these single-story houses provided minimal functionality. There were no fences, sense of ownership, space or privacy. The residents eventually made their own fences out of bamboo, which became a signature feature of these villages. This earned the veterans' village the nick name the Bamboo Fence Grid. The resilient bamboo fences alongside hibiscus bushes became a symbol of the Veteran's Villages.
In 1980, the Veteran's Village Reconstruction Project was launched and many of the old villages were demolished and replaced by modern apartment compounds. However, some of the original veteran's villages still exist. The veterans' village in Zuoying District is the largest still in existence. During Japanese colonial rule, the Japanese developed Zuoying as a major military port.
When the ROC arrived in 1945, Zuoying became a strategic Navy base. As it grew it began to take on its own character. The Mingde New Village has only 52 residences that live in single family houses with their own gardens and backyards. Each home is approximately 250 pings (approximately 826 square meters). To this day Mingde New Village still houses retired captains and admirals and their families.
These old-fashioned veteran's villages are sadly disappearing and the culture is in danger of disappearing. Some people have started working to preserve the military villages. Mayor Chen Chu feels the military villages are part of Taiwan's irreplaceable historical heritage and has already developed policies to preserve the Zuoying's veteran's villages. The City Government delegated 59 hectares (approximately 0.59 square kilometers) in the Zuoying District as a cultural heritage site. The City Government has also been negotiating with the Ministry of Defense to exchange the land in Zuoying with other parts of Kaohsiung. The ultimate goal is to transform the village into a cultural park.
The Mingde New Village is still occupied by many residents. Although, it is considered a living museum, many people are worried the government's renovation plan implies the demolition of the entire village. This is certainly not something the city wishes and vows the cultural park will invite contemporary artists such as Li Mingze and Su Wangshen to revitalize the village and retain its history, heritage and identity. However, the artists will be free to express their creativity.
光陰的故事 眷村的今與昨
明德新村仍有許多現居戶，可說是「活的博物館」。眷村因其獨特的時空背景形成特殊的文化聚落，保留著一個時代的能量與文化，眷村居民在這片土地上將對家鄉的思念的投注，轉化成對這片土地的依賴並生根，綻放出台灣近代獨特而鮮明的文化。
1949年國民政府撤退來台，從中國大陸各省來台的軍人子弟及眷屬也隨著國民政府撤退到台灣，群居或散居在台灣各個城鎮，依不同兵種被安置於各處，高雄岡山是空軍子弟，前鎮是陸軍子弟，左營則是海軍子弟。除接收從前日本人所遺留的房舍給左營海軍將領及眷屬而有較好的居住環境外，因為當時的政府和軍眷都抱持著即將反攻大陸的信念，故僅建造許多臨時而簡陋的平房給其餘的官兵居住，四週也沒有圍牆，且為了方便起見，以竹子圍成籬笆，這種簡陋的眷村就叫竹籬笆，竹籬笆圍成的空間和竹籬笆旁嬌豔的朱槿是眷村獨有的印記，1980年眷村改建計劃實施後，許多老舊眷村被拆除改建成集合住宅形式的大樓。
高雄左營是全國單一軍種最大的海軍眷村，自日據時代起，左營就被闢為軍港，光復後(1945年)成為海軍基地並廣設眷村，孕育出風格獨特的眷村文化。
而高雄左營的明德新村則不同於一般「竹籬笆」的印象，全村僅52戶，獨門獨院的日式建築，平均每戶約有250坪，是日軍遺留在左營最高級的眷舍。1949年海軍總部遷至左營，明德新村核配給當時服役的將級軍官家眷們居住，當時即有「將軍村」之稱，至目前為止，明德新村除了少數住戶為上校級者，絕大多數仍是將軍們。
眷村文化面臨消失的景象，喚醒國人對於保留眷村文化的意識。高雄市長陳菊表示眷村文化是台灣歷史文化的一部分，保留左營眷村為文創發展園區是市府的既定政策，目前已將面積廣達59公頃的眷區土地全部登錄為文化景觀，更不惜採取「容積移轉」、「以地易地」方式，向國防部爭取左營眷村保留。
仍有現居戶的明德新村，可說是「活的博物館」，高雄市政府和許多人同樣關心眷村改建計劃實施後，明德新村恐將面臨全面拆除的命運，市政府希望能保存左營眷村並轉換為文創發展園區，目前已有知名藝術家李明則、蘇旺伸進駐，希望透過明德新村跨時代的歷史背景，讓眷村園區活化，也給予藝術工作者創作的空間。
文／張小琪；攝影／曾鄂生、楊蟬華
