Henning Larsen wins competition to build Chinese leisure city

New York is known for its skyscrapers, Miami, for its saved art deco buildings, and Shenzhen, China, may soon be known as one of the coolest places in the Orient to just go and chill. Of course, the city is much more than that already, and has big plans including an eye-catching new headquarters planned for genome maker iCarbonX.

But that’s just a small part of what’s in store for Shenzhen. With Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen recently winning an international competition to design a waterfront district for the Chinese city, the planned new quarter of Shenzhen will have ample public space, as well as tree-edged boulevards, gardens, and plazas.

The "leisure city" aspect of the development will comprise multiple cultural attractions, the project’s architects said. It will have a Ferris wheel, outdoor sculptures, rooftop art exhibits, and a waterside promenade.

"Our design aims to make Shenzhen the waterfront city it should always have been," says Claude Godefroy, partner and design director of Henning Larsen’s Hong Kong office. "To create an attractive waterfront, we brought commercial and cultural facilities metres away from the seashore, so citizens will finally be able to enjoy the atmosphere of Shenzhen Bay in an activated urban environment, like in Sydney, Singapore or Copenhagen."

Since early 2020, Americans have been forced to sequester themselves in their homes with outdoor activities, in most cases, being the sole respite for social distancing. And many of people are going back to the basics with a quintessential outdoor activity: biking. Bike sales absolutely skyrocketed during the pandemic, growing by 69% in 2020.

Resiliency | Jun 24, 2021

Oceanographer John Englander talks resiliency and buildings [new on HorizonTV]

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Nelson Mandela Park green space in Rotterdam

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The Weekly Show, Apr 29, 2021: COVID-19's impact on campus planning, and bird management strategies

University Buildings | Apr 29, 2021

The Weekly Show, April 29, 2021: COVID-19's impact on campus planning, and bird management strategies

This week on The Weekly show, BD+C Senior Editor John Caulfield interviews a duo of industry experts on 1) how campus planning has changed during the pandemic and 2) managing bird infestations on construction sites and completed buildings.

Abandoned train depot in Detroit will be part of new mobility innovation district under development.

Urban Planning | Dec 6, 2020

Ford lays out plans for mobility innovation district in Detroit

Its centerpiece is an abandoned train depot whose architecture and decay reflect two sides of this city’s past.

Resiliency | Nov 5, 2020

CRE investors are concerned that cities aren’t resilient enough for climate change

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Multifamily Housing | Oct 22, 2020

The Weekly show: Universal design in multifamily housing, reimagining urban spaces, back to campus trends

BD+C editors speak with experts from KTGY Architecture + Planning, LS3P, and Omgivning on the October 22 episode of "The Weekly." The episode is available for viewing on demand.