Urban Architecture  was selected by the developer Greenland Group, upon a competition against 8 architecture studios, to be in charge of the urban plan of the  Business District at Shanghai Hongqiao Airport. The site is situated in the south of the biggest single architecture expo, Shanghai Exhibition.

The project has been divided into two parts: Urban Architecture (UA) will design the office district on the western side of the plot and AEDAS will design the commercial center on the eastern side. The completion is planned for 2016.

UA and AEDAS have started construction on a Central Business District at Shanghai’s  domestic airport Hongqiao. The 18.4ha site is located near Hongqiao Transportation Hub (airport & train stations) at the corner of Yin Gang East Road and Zhuguang Road. The plan sums up 332890 m2 of office towers floor space, 120422 m2 commercial space and 99564 m2 hotel. This array will bring a more familiar (comfortable) form of urban life into the area. The project’s completion is planned for 2016.

Just a few weeks after winning the competition, ground was broken on this urban masterplan for an office and retail center near the 4th busiest airport in mainland China. The 18.4ha site is divided into a small plot, on the west side, for the shopping center and the hotel and a larger eastern plot for offices and serviced apartments. The success of the project was due to a highly energy-efficient architecture proposal combined with an urban plan that allows for pedestrian-friendly spaces.
The center office-area can be divided into “a flower with eight leaves”, thus facilitating their rental units into different sized companies. The flower shape intersects with 4 of the “petals”, the bottom of four towers will merge into one building to share the public lobby of the second floor, facilitating the busy pedestrian flow at the first level. The “petals” and “leaves” are flexibly designed to contain one or more tenants. On the western plot, the commercial pedestrian flow is guided along a bow curve which connects the shopping center to the hotel and conference center, this way the path can connect to the two main road crossings. The shopping center, hotel and conference center in the eastern plot will be designed and detailed by AEDAS.
Ecology
The project has some interesting features: high performance insulation, optimized building shape, natural ventilation, rainwater collection, permeable road surfaces, links to public transport and a reduction in the urban heat-island effect. The office towers will feature green roofs growing local plant species and the flower shaped buildings will have continuous terraces used as communication platforms.

Project Director: Yu Zhifeng
Project leader: Yao Yuan
Team members : Cai Yanhong , Li Yao Jing, Indian Hill Hung , Yin Shun, Mazhen Long , Yu Cheng , Lin Lin , Wu Yi Can.
Client: GreenLand Group
Status: under construction
Location: Shanghai, China
Year: 2013
Type: Commercial
Total Ground Area: 18,4 ha
Built Area: 552,900 m² above ground, 152,800 m² underground
Max Height: 19,25 m