The site selection for The Urban Regeneration Design Competition – “The Appointment between Youth and City” is located in Liangxi District, Wuxi City. Based on the needs of diverse and multi-level public environment as well as experiential space for the young people, the competition organizing committee has selected five sites, including Erquan Square, Zhang’s Jiale Hall, “Caozhangli” Food Street, Liangxi District Library and Yongding Bridge Park.
Erquan Square
(1)Location Information: Erquan Square is located in the core area of Chong’an Temple block in the urban center, with a conceptual design scope of 6,550 square meters and a core design scope of 800 square meters.
(2)Overview: Chong’an Temple is the origin and cultural symbol of Wuxi city. The Erquan Square, located in the core of Chong’an Temple block, is a public leisure square named after the famous erhu song “The Moon Over a Fountain” by Chinese folk musician Hua Yanjun (Ah Bing). A seated statue of Ah Bing immersed in music stands in the core area, which has become the soul of Erquan Square. The square is also adjacent to the former residence of Ah Bing, a national key cultural relics protection unit in the sixth batch; the former site of Wuxi County Library, a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province, as well as numerous historical and cultural buildings such as Yuhuang Hall and Chong’an Pavilion, which are symbols of the prosperity of Wuxi’s cultural heritage.
(3)Design Requirements: It is required to use scene planning and design, characteristic installations to coordinate the three-dimensional spaces of plan, facade and skyline, establish a spiritual landmark that reflects the epitome of Wuxi’s urban history and development, and achieve the transition of Erquan Square from the historical origin of the city to the gravitational source of urban youth, so that it can better serve and function as a cultural window and urban living room.
Zhang’s Jiale Hall
(1)Location Information: Zhang’s Jiale Hall is located at No. 252 Nan Chang Street, covering an area of approximately 564 square meters, with an indoor area of approximately 1,065 square meters (two floors).
(2)Overview: Zhang’s Jiale Hall was built by Zhang, a senior employee of Qingfeng Cotton Mill, in 1930. Jiale Hall faces west and east, with a width of five rooms and three entrances. The first flat house was demolished due to the widening of Nan Chang Street, and the entrance was changed to a gable wall for entry and exit. The second entrance is a two-story building with a height of 4 meters, long French windows on the ground, and a three-story attic with two roof windows. The exterior walls are built with granite stone, and stone carvings are embedded on the feet to record. It is indicated that “When the homeowner rebuilt the house, more than three chi (equal to 90 centimeters) of space was vacated on the east gable wall side. Although recorded by the county construction bureau, in the winter of the 19th year of the Republic of China, Zhang Jiale Hall recorded.”, which has significant historical value in architecture. It was announced as a municipal-level cultural relic protection unit in June 2003 and restored to its original appearance in October 2008.
(3)Design Requirements: Based on the basic form and structure of the building, it is required to combine with the reversible indoor space renovation with minimal disturbance, plan to create an innovative format for young people loved, so as to accurately match the needs of young people, reconstruct the spatial scene, and pulse the new life of historical buildings.
“Caozhangli” Food Street
(1)Location Information: Caozhangli is an old street running north to south, located between Yongfeng Road and Yongle Road, with a total length of less than 1 kilometer.
(2)Overview: Caozhangli was originally a small yellow mud path in a vegetable field in Yangming Township, a suburb of Wuxi. It was not until the rise of Caozhang New Village in the 1980s that the continuous influx of popularity gradually formed the current urban lifestyle in Caozhangli. Today, Caozhangli has become the most popular food check-in spot in Wuxi, with the most authentic taste of Wuxi and becoming the “Grassroots Food Street of Wuxi”. In addition, to the south of Caozhangli, there are also a series of energetic and artistic youth social gathering venues, such as the Taihu Lake Square, Wuxi Library, Wuxi Museum and China-Japan Friendship Park, etc.
(3)Design Requirements: The main focus shall be on the scene planning and enhancement of overall style. It aims to update and improve the traditional business forms of the old street, and strengthen the atmosphere of youth activities in the block based on the overall organization design of space and transportation streamlines, combined with the youth lifestyle and aesthetic of life.
Liangxi District Library
(1)Location Information: Liangxi District Library is located at No. 328 Renmin East Road. The main building covers an area of approximately 2,447 square meters, with a total indoor area of approximately 10,000 square meters with five floors.
(2)Overview: The Liangxi District Library is adjacent to the Youth Palace of Liangxi District, District Cultural Center and Renmin Road Campus of Donglin Middle School. It was rated as a first-class library by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2023. The main building has 5 floors, with the library on floors 1 and 2, as well as the archives on floors 3 to 5. Due to the relocation of the Liangxi District Archives, the 3rd to 5th floors will be used as the library. Therefore, it is proposed to carry out on-site renovation for all the 5 floors of the library.
(3)Design Requirements: On the premise of ensuring that basic functions such as reading and cultural exchange are not affected, the main focus shall be on the relocated floors 3-5. With avant-garde trend experience as the guide, combined with innovative theme planning to integrate more new scenes, spaces and formats, it is required to expand the content attributes and activities that the library can bear, and form differentiated development with the district youth palace and cultural center, in order to establish a cultural space that meets the spiritual needs of young people, demonstrate avant-garde while highlighting cultural confidence.
Yongding Bridge Park
(1)Location Information: Yongding Bridge Park is located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Xianqian West Street and Jiefang West Road, with the Huimin Parking Lot on Xianqian West Street to the south and the old moat to the west. The green area is approximately 4,095 square meters.
(2)Overview: After the preliminary renovation, the park has been maximally adapted to meet the needs of residents, allowing them to enjoy the convenience brought by the comprehensive park as soon as they go out. Meanwhile, the combination of terrain differences in the park and the addition of characteristic pieces enriches the fun and participation of the space. In addition, the park has also carried out sponge special design based on special geological conditions, which has played a positive role in improving the ecological environment of green spaces and preventing urban waterlogging. However, the park is a traditional green space model at present. Residents only come here for walking and fitness. The time for rest and stay is limited, which is not attractive to young people.
(3)Design Requirements: It is required to combine the urban park effect with the lifestyle of urban youth, fully utilize the terrain conditions to optimize the overall layout of the park space, enhance spatial vitality, provide leisure and relaxation places for young people with practical and specific atmosphere, and create a highly favored outdoor exquisite living area. It is recommended to include the southern parking lot in the renovation scope for overall consideration.
