west 8: guangzhou huadi sustainable masterplan

‘guangzhou huadi sustainable masterplan’ by west 8, fangcun huadi,guangzhou, chinaimage © west 8 urban design & landscape architectureall images courtesy of west 8

west 8‘s winning entry for the ‘guangzhou huadi masterplan’ capitalizes on the southern chinese history of horticultural fecundity to provide the city with a restorative and sustainable trajectory. as the delta land rapidly industrialized, land use scaled back the natural ecosystem of wetlands and created a scattered and severely polluted urban landscape. the proposal aims to create a balance between continuing urban development and zoned hydrology by rescaling land use and introducing ‘ecological cleaning machines’ along the canton axis, the historical gridline between guagzhou and fushan cities. the tiered system includes a primary water collector, helped by a secondary mechanism with connectors and locks and a tertiary network of canals. specific divisions between urban areas and horticultural lands are aimed at creating a more robust structure while preserving the major existing infrastructure. a central park will be bolstered by pockets of greenery and courtyards; a riverside bicycle lane will be implemented to encourage environmentally low-impact transportation. known as ‘flower city’ the main metropolitan park is set to host the ‘guangzhou international flora expo’, an urban fair event yielding a flower show, a large greenhouse, and and architectural village comprised of both restored historical buildings and new hospitality development. this city within a city would also alleviate the displacement of resettled inhabitants from nearby villages into ‘green open city block structures.’

the masterplan posits that the area can be a world-class place of technological horticultural development, while creating an atmosphere that respects the makeup and movement of lingnan culture, itself distinct in its painting style, food, greenery and above all, a thousand-year fondness of botanic culture.

a riverside park will work in conjunction with a bike path image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

ample walkways, canals and greenhouses restructure the urban layout image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

tree-lined boulevards provide shade and character

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

roads accomodate a variety of circulation and work alongside the horticultural industryimage © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

a view of the ‘flower palace’ the main component of  the ‘flower city’ and expo  

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

the small city of canals will accommodate restored historical buildings

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

pathways in the expo center will include canals guided by overhanging pergolasimage © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture 

central to plan is ‘huadi city’ an urban flower fair during phase one and a architectural village and park thereafterimage © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

fields of flowers on the fairgrounds and central park pay homage to the region’s botanical culture

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

the romance garden is the first within a series organized around a circular track on ‘huadi island’

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

interior views of the secret garden image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

the flower village is served well by historical districts and new public transport

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

‘huadi island’ and the newly zoned city at night

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

zoning plan image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

site plan image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

site strategy

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

canton axis and land division diagram

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

site diagram of ecological cleaning structures

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

restructured waterway diagram

image © west 8 urban design & landscape architecture

project info:

location: fangcun huadi, guangzhou, chinaclient: urban planning bureau of guangzhou municipalitydesign: 2012size: total area: 2050 ha. (20.5 km2), whereas core urban district: 520 ha.date: nov 2012 – jan 2013design team west 8:  adriaan geuze, edzo bindels, christoph elsasser, marco van der pluym, tanyi huang, hernando arrazola, yu-han chiu, winnie poon, attilio ranieri, jan breukelman, igor saitov, bas wegdam