Hanking Nanyou Newtown Masterplan comprises redevelopment of one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Shenzhen, located in Nanyou area of Nanshan district. The project caters to a new sustainable urban environment where mixed-use activities of living, work and support functions afford a higher density and a greater reliance on public transport and pedestrian network. The concept brings together planning doctrines of compact city, green city and intelligent city to create a microcosm that captures and recreates the progressive identity of Shenzhen while providing an innovative model for future projects.
The concept preserves existing infrastructural connections with the city as well as the historical and cultural aspects of the site. Being integral to communal development, the site’s current educational and hospital facilities are preserved. The project identifies and retains an interlaced grid system that blends the current orthogonal urban fabric to a historical diagonal axis. The existing framework of housing is revitalized as an art village providing a cultural amenity.
As the masterplan retains the central urban landscape and built form, the new development is oriented towards these existing social functions creating a link that acts as a receiving and dispersing component to channelize movement within the site. Acting as a unifying element, the multi-functional ring at the site’s core provides the best accessibility solution. The concept displaces vehicular flow in two underground layers. The first underground layer allocates drop-off zones and access to the commercial areas. The second underground layer allocates access to the parking. At the ground level, the link organizes a pedestrian friendly zone and connects the main cultural and public amenities. Above, a double-height art gallery glass tube connects the podium’s functions and provides access to the green roofs.
Using the low height - low density centre, a 3-dimensional virtual convex surface generates a definition of surrounding towers, guiding their heights, orientation and relation within the neighbourhood. The forces of movement and geometry are instantiated into a formal expression that articulates office towers, hotel, residential buildings and studio apartment buildings with cultural, social and green components of the site into a singular, coherent and unified whole. The conceptual plane inherently manages distribution of density into controlled scales of buildings creating a distinct skyline as well as affords ease of orientation and legibility for the users.
The masterplan embodies ideals of sustainable development by establishing a pedestrian friendly environment with vibrant and commercial street-scapes and public transportation connectivity to cater to diverse and rich mix of residents and visitors. Hanking Nanyou New Town reveals an inclusive vision to transform a derelict neighbourhood into a beautiful and integrated public realm for the community stake-holders and the people of Shenzhen.
