Related News
Planner sets up future Shanghai
By Zhang Jun |
January 11, 2009, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
SHANGHAI is a brilliant metropolis in the eyes of many visitors. But for others, it still falls behind New York, London or Tokyo in a considerable number of aspects.
Wu Zhiqiang, the chief planner of Expo Shanghai, is an ardent fan who sees both sides of the emerging city, which is just as well as the decisions he has made will have a major bearing on how it is perceived long into the future.
"Shanghai is an adult with a juvenile skeleton," said Wu, who leads the College of Architecture and Urban Planning of Tongji University.
To map out a plan for the world's biggest exhibition in 2010, Wu hasn't limited his brainchild to the designated area of the Expo site's 5.28-square-kilometers. He has instead lifted his vision to the 6,340-square-kilometer area of the entire city.
It is not difficult to identify the icons of this economic powerhouse of the world's most populous country. Look no further than the festively-illuminated Bund, to the skyscrapers over the river, from Xintiandi to the bustling Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall, or from dazzling office buildings to fashion boutiques.
However, as Wu points out, it still doesn't have an efficient public transport system capable of smoothly moving millions of people a day. It hosts few regional headquarters of international organizations. English is only spoken by a minority of the population and the number of expatriates is far fewer than in Hong Kong.
It doesn't have a world leading fashion show venue and Shanghai Stadium has to be a part-time concert hall. Nor does it have a waterside park from which locals can view the magnificent river.
With all these needs in mind, Wu set his 300-member Tongji University team to work on planning the Expo site in the sweltering summer days of 2004.
It involved a lot of brainstorming, blending inspiration and aspiration. Wu and his colleagues burned many a midnight oil to coalesce their thoughts into plans, earning him the nickname in Tongji of "3am Wu."
Wu's path to his current role has taken him from China to study and work overseas, from 1988 to 1994 at the Technical University of Berlin and from 1994 to 1996 as a chief researcher on urban architecture planning in Berlin.
Unlike many young overseas students in foreign countries, Wu chose to return to work in China instead of taking his parents to Germany.
"I didn't want to see my parents cut off from their relatives and friends," Wu said.
These good thoughts eventually brought Wu a good result which, in his role as chief Expo planner, will benefit Shanghai for generations.
All levels
Wu proposed the "H-city" (Harmony City) concept as a guiding principal for planning and design at all levels to illustrate Expo's "Better City, Better Life" theme. As a critical aspect of this theme, Wu conceived an "Eco+" concept, which drives both passive strategies for conservation and more active ones to improve the environment. The approach has been hailed by government officials as being capable of revolutionizing city development.
"Our plan will excite Shanghai people in 2010 but even more so in 2020 and 2030," Wu said, noting that Shanghai Expo will be quite different from the 2000 Hanover and 2005 Aichi events.
"Once Expo is over and its fence is removed, the site will instantly become a natural part of the city," he said. "Many previous World Expo plans were only concerned with the designated sites, like a Disneyland."
Wu's team worked out the Expo blueprint on an area which was once dominated by old factories and dilapidated residential houses.
The four stations of Metro Line 13 within the Expo site will be built for the event but, after it finishes, other stations will be constructed to connect Jiading District and Pudong, forming a key part of the city's 500-kilometer Metro network.
The Expo Village near Nanpu Bridge, a temporary home for staff of Expo participants during the fair, will become a residential complex for foreign diplomats in Shanghai, said Wu.
He said if Shanghai aims to be an international metropolis, it should have enough foreign consulates and headquarters of international organizations.
Shanghai now has only about 60 foreign consulates, compared with 150 in New York, he said. The Expo Village should appeal strongly enough to foreign consulates and international organizations for them to move in.
Fashion center
The Expo Park in Pudong along the banks of the Huangpu River will be open to the public when the fences come down. Wu said the elevated promenade now lining the Bund makes visitors feel detached from the water.
Additionally, the saucer-shaped Performance Center will become the city's signature fashion performance center while the Expo Center will become Shanghai's major convention hub.
A plan has been done to convert the century-old Jiangnan Shipyard on the Expo site into the nation's first Museum of Modern Industry since most of China's industries originated in Shanghai. The Urban Best Practice Area will probably become a permanent venue to showcase innovative ideas and schemes for "future cities."
The China Pavilion and Theme Pavilions will jointly add about 200,000 square meters to improve the city's overall exhibition capacity.
And two high-end hotels have been planned in an area called "Fast Food Plaza" near the Expo Center and Theme Pavilions. The precinct will become a trendy complex for international dining brands.
As World Expo 2010 Shanghai is 474 days away, Wu's influence has touched all aspects of its planning and he is anxious to see how it is implemented. "I'm sincerely grateful to construction workers toiling day and night at the Expo site to realize our blueprint," Wu said.
Wu Zhiqiang, the chief planner of Expo Shanghai, is an ardent fan who sees both sides of the emerging city, which is just as well as the decisions he has made will have a major bearing on how it is perceived long into the future.
"Shanghai is an adult with a juvenile skeleton," said Wu, who leads the College of Architecture and Urban Planning of Tongji University.
To map out a plan for the world's biggest exhibition in 2010, Wu hasn't limited his brainchild to the designated area of the Expo site's 5.28-square-kilometers. He has instead lifted his vision to the 6,340-square-kilometer area of the entire city.
It is not difficult to identify the icons of this economic powerhouse of the world's most populous country. Look no further than the festively-illuminated Bund, to the skyscrapers over the river, from Xintiandi to the bustling Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall, or from dazzling office buildings to fashion boutiques.
However, as Wu points out, it still doesn't have an efficient public transport system capable of smoothly moving millions of people a day. It hosts few regional headquarters of international organizations. English is only spoken by a minority of the population and the number of expatriates is far fewer than in Hong Kong.
It doesn't have a world leading fashion show venue and Shanghai Stadium has to be a part-time concert hall. Nor does it have a waterside park from which locals can view the magnificent river.
With all these needs in mind, Wu set his 300-member Tongji University team to work on planning the Expo site in the sweltering summer days of 2004.
It involved a lot of brainstorming, blending inspiration and aspiration. Wu and his colleagues burned many a midnight oil to coalesce their thoughts into plans, earning him the nickname in Tongji of "3am Wu."
Wu's path to his current role has taken him from China to study and work overseas, from 1988 to 1994 at the Technical University of Berlin and from 1994 to 1996 as a chief researcher on urban architecture planning in Berlin.
Unlike many young overseas students in foreign countries, Wu chose to return to work in China instead of taking his parents to Germany.
"I didn't want to see my parents cut off from their relatives and friends," Wu said.
These good thoughts eventually brought Wu a good result which, in his role as chief Expo planner, will benefit Shanghai for generations.
All levels
Wu proposed the "H-city" (Harmony City) concept as a guiding principal for planning and design at all levels to illustrate Expo's "Better City, Better Life" theme. As a critical aspect of this theme, Wu conceived an "Eco+" concept, which drives both passive strategies for conservation and more active ones to improve the environment. The approach has been hailed by government officials as being capable of revolutionizing city development.
"Our plan will excite Shanghai people in 2010 but even more so in 2020 and 2030," Wu said, noting that Shanghai Expo will be quite different from the 2000 Hanover and 2005 Aichi events.
"Once Expo is over and its fence is removed, the site will instantly become a natural part of the city," he said. "Many previous World Expo plans were only concerned with the designated sites, like a Disneyland."
Wu's team worked out the Expo blueprint on an area which was once dominated by old factories and dilapidated residential houses.
The four stations of Metro Line 13 within the Expo site will be built for the event but, after it finishes, other stations will be constructed to connect Jiading District and Pudong, forming a key part of the city's 500-kilometer Metro network.
The Expo Village near Nanpu Bridge, a temporary home for staff of Expo participants during the fair, will become a residential complex for foreign diplomats in Shanghai, said Wu.
He said if Shanghai aims to be an international metropolis, it should have enough foreign consulates and headquarters of international organizations.
Shanghai now has only about 60 foreign consulates, compared with 150 in New York, he said. The Expo Village should appeal strongly enough to foreign consulates and international organizations for them to move in.
Fashion center
The Expo Park in Pudong along the banks of the Huangpu River will be open to the public when the fences come down. Wu said the elevated promenade now lining the Bund makes visitors feel detached from the water.
Additionally, the saucer-shaped Performance Center will become the city's signature fashion performance center while the Expo Center will become Shanghai's major convention hub.
A plan has been done to convert the century-old Jiangnan Shipyard on the Expo site into the nation's first Museum of Modern Industry since most of China's industries originated in Shanghai. The Urban Best Practice Area will probably become a permanent venue to showcase innovative ideas and schemes for "future cities."
The China Pavilion and Theme Pavilions will jointly add about 200,000 square meters to improve the city's overall exhibition capacity.
And two high-end hotels have been planned in an area called "Fast Food Plaza" near the Expo Center and Theme Pavilions. The precinct will become a trendy complex for international dining brands.
As World Expo 2010 Shanghai is 474 days away, Wu's influence has touched all aspects of its planning and he is anxious to see how it is implemented. "I'm sincerely grateful to construction workers toiling day and night at the Expo site to realize our blueprint," Wu said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
