Issues Addressed
Located at the heart of Chengdu and embraced by two rivers flowing across Chengdu, Mengzhuiwan was once a flourishing block at the time of energy-intensive industrial development in the 1950s and 1960s as large state-owned enterprises built factories and residential compounds in the area. It was also home to the largest fun fair and swimming pool in Chengdu at the time. After 2000, with government agencies and state-owned enterprises moving out of the area, Mengzhuiwan block entered recession.
Mengzhuiwan Waterfront Block Renewal aims to counteract issues brought by urban decay.
From social and environmental aspects, the project targets to improve living environment for local dwellers, which includes:
increase accessible public space, infrastructure and facilities
improve waterfront space layout and function to ease mobility pressure
regenerate urban fabric (buildings, streets, playgrounds)
increase social cohesion
From cultural aspects, the project targets to retain local culture, which includes :
retrace and reflect industrial history of the area
resume its traditional market culture
pass on the cultural and artistic heritage
From economic aspects, the project targets to reinvigorate local economies, create green jobs, boost service sector and consumption.
Features and Advantages
Mengzhuiwan Waterfront Renewal Project is an integrated programme under Chengdu’s Park City Initiative, a holistic and forward-looking approach to secure sustainable urban development. In 2017, Mengzhuiwan was chosen as a pilot renewal site when Chengdu municipal government launched the Jinjiang Greenway Project. It later became part of the Tianfu Jincheng riverbank renewal project featuring regeneration of “eight blocks, nine neighbourhoods and ten scenic spots”. That was when Mengzhuiwan began to embrace urban renewal, the overarching objective of which is to achieve the systematic and organic renewal of this area. Guided by promoting content-loaded and holistic upgrade, this renewal project employed a multidimensional approach to plan and design, taking into account architecture design, landscape art, cultural inheritance, and upgrade local businesses.
The Mengzhuiwan renewal project integrates:
place-oriented policies, which take into account: physical measures to regenerate urban fabric and public space (houses, streets, playgrounds, greenways), improve facilities such as shops, restaurants, pubs, entertainment, sports and transport to make the area more attractive for both locals and outsiders.
organization-oriented policies, which take into account: collaboration and partnerships among the local government, residents, and the market sector; adoption of EPC+O model in project implementation.
The renewal project is a joint effort of the public and private sectors. The project adopted the EPC+O model(engineering, procurement, construction+operate). A state-owned platform company first sorted out and managed the property assets of this area, and then leased the property as a package to a private company which led a consortium to take the responsibilities, including the renovation, construction, business attraction and operation. The platform company invested in the public space transformation later, whereas the business operators funded the commercial space transformation.
people-oriented policies, which take into account: social measures for individual improvement (employment, upgrade local businesses) and social cohesion measures aimed at better social relations in the neighborhoods. It is not an isolated programme focusing solely on refreshing the outlook of the block, but an integrated, nature-based and collective response to tackle urban decay and meet the demands of the locals, tourists, and local businesses. In all the renewal work, the pillar concepts are "making the life of the locals' better", "allowing outsiders to better experience the local culture", and "making the business of the merchants more prosperous".
Application (Where & How)
Chengdu's Mengzhuiwan waterfront block is located alongside the city's Jinjiang River. The block is emerging as a landmark for waterfront culture. It now is an essential part of the urban renewal project and the belt of Jinjiang parks, a green infrastructure of Chengdu's park city initiative.
The mengzhuiwan waterfront block renewal project spans 1.68 square kilometres and consists of three parts:
a culture and creativity block -Wangpingfang,
a waterfront commercial pedestrian street,
and a gourmet street -Xiangxiang Lane.
The culture and creativity block-Wangpingfang became the city's new cultural landmark. The idea of" great art out of small allay" makes people take the initiative to maintain and revitalize the cultural heritage. The former site of Chenghua District Tax Service, State Taxation Administration was preserved and turned into an office building for culture and creativity businesses. A courtyard was divided into a theatre and a recreational space; the yard now serves as a first-choice venue for cultural and music events.
The commercial street on the waterfront is an excellent example of the concept of Chengdu's Park City Initiative that seeks balanced development amoung people, city, environment and industry. The landscape of the commercial street is designed in a fashion that reflects the district's industrial history and brings back people's memories of this area.
The original fences of the waterfront green belt were removed and trees were retained to expand the public space and to improve the accessibility to the waterfront space. Pedestrian space is expanded and on-street parking is limited, so that local residents can have a better traffic experience on their way to work and on their way home. Ten public leisure spaces were created to meet diversified recreation needs. Small public rest spots were sorted out to stimulate more social interaction possibility.
The facades of the commercial buildings on this street were renovated, and each building forms a project with a unique design and separate management policy; local brands are attracted and incubated in this area, and the waterfront road was turned into a car-free street and rebrand as Riverside Market attracting tourists. Shops of more diverse business formats are brought in. A Waterfront Bazaar is launched, regular night fair are hosted together with festival activities. Taking into account the leisure habits of local residents, a well-organized outdoor space is formed, attracting a growing number of young visitors.
The original business formats that are closely connected with the residents were kept with optimized spatial design to avoid inconvenience to residents' life after the renewal.
The gourmet street -Xiangxiang Lane is small but attractive. The stores on both sides of the lane are decorated with the style of western Sichuan architecture of the Republic of China period, and sell mainly Sichuan and Chongqing cuisines.
Comments on the Solution
The EPC+O model explored a new way to get businesses engaged in urban renewal. Citizens of the community can participate in the governance and implementation of the project, which unleashed more possibilities for urban renewal.
The Mengzhuiwan block has grown into a premium recreation choice for citizens and a must-visit destination for tourists. The diversified stores in the neighbourhood, forming a unique street view in the block, helped it become a pilot area for the emerging 'small-store economy', 'first-store economy' and 'night economy'. And the rich cultural events, including limited editions of plays, music performances, and markets, have made this old-town area a trendy place among the young people who bring vigour and vitality to the site. It was reported that during the National Day holiday of 2020, over 800,000 people visited this area.
Chengdu’s Mengzhuiwan Waterfront Renewal Solutions were enlisted in the List of Transferrable Solutions to the Renewal of Old Residential Neighborhoods released by China’s Ministry Housing and Urban-Rural Development.
