Recently, located in the Guanqian business district of Gusu District, the Meiluo plot urban renewal project plan demonstration meeting was held, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, professor of Southeast University Wang Jianguo and other experts around the ancient city style protection, façade improvement, public interface design, traffic organization and other aspects of the discussion, the project has been unanimously recognized by the participating experts.
Create a "garden in the mall, a mall in the garden"
Metro Mall is located in the core of Guanqian business district, close to Renmin Road on the west side and Ganjiang Road on the south side. In the course of more than 30 years of development, Metro has undergone several additions and expansions, but it is still difficult to meet the needs of commercial layout. With the support of the Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government, the District Party Committee and the District Government, at the end of September this year, the Group completed the property rights collection of the land on the south side of Meiluo, and planned to renovate the land.
In the design of the urban renewal project of the Metro plot, the function group hired Cui Kai, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, to lead the design. Academician Cui Kai's team has always maintained respect for history and culture, and actively explored how modern business can be integrated into the ancient city. In the process of project design, we adhere to the design principle of cultural background and seek the cultural expression of commercial space, so that Suzhou's cultural genes can be modernized and inherited.
On the basis of the existing North Building and Southeast Building of Meiluo, the renovation revitalizes the land on the south side. The new southern expansion part is integrated with the original building, the new part is five floors above ground, five floors underground, and the roof of the whole project is set up with garden-style buildings, linking garden culture and modern fashion aesthetics, creating a "garden in the shopping mall, a shopping mall in the garden", enriching the image of the city, and forming a good demonstration effect of "inheritance in protection and development in innovation".
The roof of the project is set up with a garden-style building (renderings)
At the same time, the design of the project also considered the composite space utilization of the rail transit land, with the upper part overhanging to form a sky garden and the lower part to form a rain-sheltering urban space. The underground subway station commercial street is conveniently connected with the commercial street on the first and second basement floors of Metro Mall, forming an urban public space node where people gather. The project considers the relationship between the existing buildings on the north side and the façade of the new buildings on the south side along the urban interface of Renmin Road, so as to reduce the building volume and further optimize the urban interface.
It is reported that the project is planned to start construction in the first half of 2024, and the total construction area of Metro Mall will reach 129,000 square meters after the renovation.
Promote the organic combination of protection and renewal
In the process of promoting the urban renewal and transformation project of the Meiluo plot, the reserve and Gusu District fully understand the importance of the project to the Guanqian business district and urban renewal, adhere to the concept of protection first, people's livelihood first, and development first, and coordinate with the municipal and district departments for many times, sort out the difficulties and blockages in the process of promoting the project, refine the quantitative and specific work tasks, and promote the urban renewal and transformation project of the Meiluo plot in an efficient and pragmatic manner.
Project renderings
In the planning and design, the municipal and district capital planning departments are upright, innovative, and responsible, and implement the requirements of ancient city protection in the project design by integrating the strength of experts and scholars in the industry. With the joint efforts of experts and scholars, relevant departments and construction units, the urban renewal project of the Meiluo plot profoundly interprets the organic combination of protection and renewal, and the overall plan not only respects the traditional style of the ancient city, but also reflects the architectural language of the times.
In the next step, the reserve and Gusu District will continue to increase efforts to promote the implementation of the urban renewal project of the Meiluo plot, so that high-quality economic and social development and high-level protection and renewal of the ancient city will fly together.
Source: Suzhou Gusu release