Archinect
BAU (Brearley Architects and Urbanists)

BAU (Brearley Architects and Urbanists)

Shanghai, CN

anchor
This design maintained traces of the site’s history and re-established indigenous eco-system corridors.
This design maintained traces of the site’s history and re-established indigenous eco-system corridors.
19 more images  ↓

Docklands Park, Yangtze River, Jiangyin

Introduction

Jiangyin is on the Yangtze, the world’s busiest working river. The city is regenerating part of its industrial docklands as a high density live-work district. Stage one of this major project is the creation of a 4km public realm along the river edge. The design was selected through invited competition.

Ambitions

1. re-establish indigenous eco-system corridors;

2. preserve the industrial character;

3. maintain presence of the historic past;

4. introduce leisure infrastructure for the new era

5. link beyond the site for the emergence of a city park network.


1. Soft edges and eco corridors

The Yangtze at this location is tidal. This project rehabilitates, preserves, enhances and extends a raft of microhabitats. Complexity of the existing river edge is formally maintained, enhanced and secured with loose rock scaled for habitat. A new corridor of indigenous trees and plants weaves through the project’s length to connect the Ebizui mountain ecological node to the east with the canal eco corridor towards the west. 

 

2. Post-industrial poetics

The vast worn concrete wharves are colored by the brown earth washed down the Yangtze. Overlooking the two-kilometer river from the prosaic empty docks presents an overwhelming scale and sense of the sublime. This design preserves even the most brutal of structures. Necessary new interventions on and around the wharves share the scale, robustness and clarity of this industrial context. Whilst the future district promises to be filled with vibrancy, and much of the landscape is rich in complexity, the wharf edges provide a rare escape.

3. Continuity with the Past

Palimpsest – Ship Building Park

Whilst the majority of the site was open and flat for stockpiling raw materials, the eastern portion of the site was recently a functioning ship building facility. The design strategy maintained traces of the site’s history and overlaid a number of ecological, circulation and programmatic layers. The result is a complex palimpsest supporting inclusive and diverse open spaces and activities.

The history layer includes ship slipways; gantry cranes and rails; ship building factory structures; jetties; a Chinese garden; a tree lined road; and numerous other artefacts. Other layers across the site include: connections (pedestrian paths, bike paths, water boardwalk, extensions of views to and from the site, and paths from the new districts – all maximizing links between the city and the water); active leisure (sports courts and skate park); play (children’s adventure playground in the form of a ship, and elderly exercise area); social gathering (large plaza, visitor center, and large pavilions); relaxation (small pavilions, intimate seating, picnic tables, and  ship interpretation installation); and ecological (rain gardens, water edge habitats, eco-corridor).

Three Historic Ports

Jiangyin’s origins as a port city date back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). Research revealed the location of three historic ports. The site of Huang Tian Port, reputedly dating back nearly 2000 years, has been developed as the dockland’s major open space for public events. Interpretive mapping of the Yangtze River is integrated in its paving. Historic Jiu Cai Port has been named and restored in its most recent iteration, as industrial port. A new restaurant designed as an urban hill provides a lookout point. Shiyu Port dates from the 1500s and was a renowned fish market. The new landscape here establishes a plaza, park, and fish restaurant. An integrated paving artwork provides further interpretation.


4. new era of leisure

After a hiatus of nearly fifty years China is prospering and its citizens are rediscovering all variety of leisure pursuits. This landscape introduces opportunities for the very young to the very old. It is the city’s largest playground. Linked by a 4km jogging track are dozens of outdoor sports courts and frequent gym equipment stations for public use. A more leisurely path weaves the length of the site and connects several large children’s playgrounds, a skate park, and numerous groupings of exercise equipment for the elderly. Frequent throughout the landscape are dancing plazas, a popular local pursuit. A host of pavilions, tables for games, and lawns for picnics, tents and programs yet to come. The park ushers in a novel, exotic era of health and play.

 

5. Emerging park network

The bicycle path in this docklands park has initiated a 20km bicycle loop tracing existing and proposed lineal parks in the city. Linking the disparate parks with this loop, or greenway, brings about an accompanying ecological link. An extensive eco-system network is emerging. Pedestrian paths extend along the Yangtze either way. To the east a narrow boardwalk has been installed to enable people to pass around the steep mountain edge. The docklands park is also designed to smoothly connect to the urban district under construction. The circulation of the foreshore is coupled with the urban circulation. Plazas and city-river view corridors are located on street axis from where landscape paths radiate.

 
Read more

Status: Built
Location: Jiangyin, CN
Firm Role: schematic design
Additional Credits: BAU Project Team:
Principal: James Brearley

Landscape
Project Leader: Fang Huang
Landscape Architecture Team: Robin Armstrong, Wang Can, Xiong Juan, Li Shuyun, Lu Yinghong, Fang Xujie, Chen Yanling, Wang Chenlei, Huang Junbiao, Liu Xiaobo, Lisa Ann Gray, Alexander Abke, Wang Tiankui, Luo Li, Cheng Yedian

Architecture
Project Manager: Jiang Han
Architecture Team: Steve Whitford, Joseph Tran, Zhang Xu, Gao Weiguo, Ni Wei, Hou Huilin, Tatjana Djordjevic, Li Fuming, Wang Keming, Li Dongdong, Yang Tai, Pu Lengfeng

Client: Jiangyin Urban Planning Bureau
Contractor: Jiangsu Natural Environment Construction Group Co., Ltd., Changshu Traditional Chinese Architecture & Landscaping Construction Co.,Ltd., Suzhou Wu Lin Landscape Development Co., Ltd.
Engineer: Jiangyin Urban and Rural Planning Design Institute
Landscape Construction Documentation: Jiangyin Urban and Rural Planning Design Institute
3D Rendering: BAU

Photographs: Zeng Jianghe, Xiazhi

 
A new corridor of indigenous trees and plants weaves through
A new corridor of indigenous trees and plants weaves through
The history layer:gantry cranes and rails
The history layer:gantry cranes and rails
Industrial character and the most brutal of structures are preserved.
Industrial character and the most brutal of structures are preserved.
Continuity with the Past
Continuity with the Past
Huang Tian Port, reputedly dating back nearly 2000 years, has been developed as the dockland’s major open space for public events.
Huang Tian Port, reputedly dating back nearly 2000 years, has been developed as the dockland’s major open space for public events.
Interpretive mapping of the Yangtse River is integrated in its paving. Maintaining presence of the historic past.
Interpretive mapping of the Yangtse River is integrated in its paving. Maintaining presence of the historic past.
a 4km jogging track
a 4km jogging track
Linked by a 4km jogging track are dozens of outdoor sports courts and frequent gym equipment stations for public use.
Linked by a 4km jogging track are dozens of outdoor sports courts and frequent gym equipment stations for public use.
Stage one of this major project is the creation of a 4km public realm along the river edge.
Stage one of this major project is the creation of a 4km public realm along the river edge.
Complexity of the existing river edge is formally maintained, enhanced and secured with loose rock scaled for habitat.
Complexity of the existing river edge is formally maintained, enhanced and secured with loose rock scaled for habitat.
birdview of Shiyu Port Park
birdview of Shiyu Port Park
The history layer:gantry cranes and rails
The history layer:gantry cranes and rails
Jiu Cai Port has been named and restored in its most recent iteration, as industrial port.
Jiu Cai Port has been named and restored in its most recent iteration, as industrial port.
This project rehabilitates, preserves, enhances and extends a raft of microhabitats.
This project rehabilitates, preserves, enhances and extends a raft of microhabitats.
relaxation (small pavilions, intimate seating)
relaxation (small pavilions, intimate seating)
variety of leisure pursuits.
variety of leisure pursuits.
Necessary new interventions on and around the wharves share the scale, robustness and clarity of this industrial context.
Necessary new interventions on and around the wharves share the scale, robustness and clarity of this industrial context.
Overlooking the river from the prosaic empty docks presents an overwhelming scale and sense of the sublime.
Overlooking the river from the prosaic empty docks presents an overwhelming scale and sense of the sublime.
links beyond the site for the emergence of a city park network.
links beyond the site for the emergence of a city park network.