IDEA: CREATE ONE OF THE WORLD’S GREAT URBAN OPEN SPACES
Description:
In the hearts and minds of Nanjing’s 11 million residents GuLou Square is the historic heart of the City dating back well before Nanjing was the capitol of China. GuLou Square contains the best of Nanjing’s past including GuLou, the historic Drum Tower, and its neighboring historic Bell Tower. It was the location of processions honoring Sun Yat-sen. It includes an array of health care, post office and other public service facilities, Nanjing University and Southeast University. GuLou Square is reasonably proximate to the Old City Wall dating from the Ming Dynasty, as well as parks and open spaces surrounding Xuanwu Lake. The District is home to some of Nanjing’s best contemporary architecture, including the landmark ZiFeng Tower designed by SOM completed in 2010. Five (5) major streets converge at grade. Below grade two (2) stacked subway lines traverse the District and beneath those a six (6) lane vehicular tunnel. While rich in uses and well connected via public transportation the district lacks the vibrancy and social interaction that result from street-level activity, “people”! The goal is to make GuLou Square one of the world’s great urban open spaces, to create activate plazas, streets, bridges and parks that attract people who visit, live, work and study nearby and encouraging them to interact and simply enjoy being there enjoying the best attributes of urban living.
Role:
Prime consultants, urban design, conceptual design, schematic design, design development, construction documents review, construction phase services
Client:
City of Nanjing Planning Bureau
Consultants / Collaborators:
Nanjing Landscape Design Institute, Nanjing Civil Defense Institute, Nanjing Subway Design Institute
Stakeholders:
Nanjing Leadership, Nanjing Planning Bureau, Nanjing Subway, Civil Defense, Transportation, Utility and Drainage Departments, City of Nanjing Arborists, City of Nanjing Parks Department, Adjoining Private Property Owners
Date Complete: on-going
Area: 25 acres (10 hectares)
Sustainability:
Historic Tree Preservation, Public Transit Connectivity, Storm Water Management, Water Quality, Water Harvesting and Re-use, Cultural and Historic Preservation, Native / Naturalized Landscape, Low Water Consuming Landscape, Porous Surfaces, Green Roofs, Local Materials, Multi-Modal Transportation and Connectivity, Walkable and Bikeable