As part of ongoing development authored by the Vanke Research Center in Shenzhen, MVRDV has revealed the completion of a refurbished factory building that will help transform a former industrial site into what it says will be one of the city’s most important community hubs.

Located in the city’s Nantou district, the 11,000 square meter Idea Factory development will serve as a much-needed fount of cultural exchange for the city of over 12.5 million.

A revealed concrete core structure makes up the new facade lined with loggias and centered by a wood-cladded semicircle protruding balcony located on the fourth floor of the building’s east-facing side. 

Topped off by an atypical public garden that is divided by a bamboo-walled maze, the building’s rooftop is outfitted with a number of different spaces including a glassbox performance venue, gym, tea house, play and dining areas. Finally, a giant chessboard and dance floor complete the program, with a fair amount of greenery which helps to promote biodiversity amongst the previously underdeveloped neighborhood.

Nantou is in the midst of a development spike that will incorporate an unusual number of adaptive reuse projects than the city’s more glitzier recent high-end projects. MVRDV’s founder Winy Maas sees in this demarcation an area for excitement and new architectural possibilities. 

“Not only were we able to make use of this existing structure, we intensified its use – adding an extra floor – and wove it into the public realm of Nantou with its green and public rooftop,” he said. “It shows that the ‘hyper-new’ city of Shenzhen is entering its phase of reusing and renewing old buildings and turning them into the ‘new-old’.”