Capital Steel ‘Shougang’ Industrial Park is located on the westward extension of Chang’an Avenue in Beijing, which connects a series of important spaces and historic buildings. The masterplan area of around 2.8 square kilometres includes a “North District” and a “South District” divided by Chang’an Avenue. The North District, with a total GFA of 1.25 million sq. m, will incorporate two TOD developments, and serve multiple functions such as office, public services, living, and retail, with its well-preserved historic buildings and new developments around them, showcasing Shougang’s industrial heritage and a forward-looking image.
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BEIJING CAPITAL STEEL MASTERPLAN
Urban Design (Under Construction)
Firm
Farrells
Architect/Designer
Stefan Krummeck
Design Team
Stefan Krummeck, CedricTang, Wu Chen, Min Chen, Gracie Ye, Jiawei Ding, Louise Wong, Tolis Apostolidis, Franky Chan, Matthew Donkersley, Fang Fang Gu
Location
Beijing
Country
China
Photographer/Copyright
©Farrells
With over 100 years of history as Beijing’s major steelwork hub, the district is now facing a new policy to encourage it to become a sustainable mixed-use district for living working and leisure. The brief developed with the guidance of the central government seeks to inject a significant amount of new development into the site. The aspiration is for the district to become a unique highlight within Beijing that adds commercial value to the neighbourhood and cultural value to the city.
Our masterplan strategy uses a placemaking approach to develop the site while preserving a unique identity and legacy. The adaptive reuse of factory buildings provides a sensitive urban solution to rejuvenate the district – celebrating the unique character of the district whilst also injecting commercial and residential complemented with leisure and retail, whilst also maintaining and celebrating many of the nearby heritage factory buildings. To maximise the number of heritage structures, they are designed to be integrated into the new developments, thereby creating a dialogue between the new and the old. The facades and structures of the heritage buildings are restored and enhanced both internally and externally.
TOD is applied to ensure the development above and below ground is well connected to the city. High-rise buildings are limited and careful consideration is made to preserve the distinct skyline of chimneys and factory roofs which act as landmarks aiding in wayfinding and navigation. Plazas act as nodes providing clearings from within which the iconic roofs, chimneys and brick facades can be fully appreciated. In key locations, the large factory buildings are broken down to create a finer urban grain and pedestrian-friendly environment that is permeable and promotes walkability.
Three Major Hubs: High-density commercial development is focused around the underground transit hubs which are located to ensure that most of the district is within a suitable walking distance of the mass transit connections. Positive connections to the transit via basement links offer prime thoroughfares for locating retail and ensure efficient access and circulation.
Shougang Avenue: The planned MTR route inspires the connection of Shougang Avenue allowing it to become a link between TOD hubs. Our idea is to maximise the exposure of heritage buildings along Shougang Avenue. New buildings are setbacks behind old buildings along Shougang Avenue to reach the required density.
Eight Character Districts: Capital Steel Industrial Park is positioned to be a creative high-tech park, with districts that provide a variety of facilities, including a mixture of apartments and offices, also incorporate headquarters of cultural and creative technological industries and financial services.
Connection via Chang’an Avenue: The Industrial Park is a key node of West Chang’an Avenue, the west gate of Beijing’s urban area, and a generator of the city development of Beijing. The surrounding natural environment opens up the opportunity for the Industrial Park to be an ecological and green community, setting a precedent for the future sustainable development of industrial areas within Beijing, and throughout the world.