Urban renewal plots in the center of Shanghai, historical buildings have attracted much attention. Witnessing the changes in the city, they are shaking off the dust and showing their posture, as if quietly waiting to meet the world again.
In the new round of practical exploration of the protection of historical buildings, the concept of "the strictest protection" has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and has become the consensus of all parties. What is unique about Shanghai in protecting its historical heritage and inheriting the city's cultural context? What new technologies and methods have been used?
Recently, the reporter successively walked into the former Ministry of Works and Bureau Building located in the core area of the Bund Landscape Area, Zhang Yuan, the largest existing mid-to-late Shikumen architectural complex in Shanghai, and the commercial body of Tian'an Qianshu Phase I, a new Internet celebrity punch card on the Suzhou River, in an attempt to sort out the replicable and generalizable experience belonging to Shanghai.
Former Ministry of Works Bureau Building: A hundred-year-old "organ stronghold" will be enclosed and opened
In the core area of the Bund Historical Landscape Area, the former Ministry of Works Bureau Building encloses Henan Middle Road, Hankou Road, Jiangxi Middle Road and Fuzhou Road. Despite the construction fence on the façade, it still can't hide its gorgeous brilliance. This large, solemn century-old building was once the center of power of the Shanghai public concession authorities, and was once occupied by the Japanese army, and later served as the seat of the Kuomintang Shanghai Municipal Government, and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government was also located here after the establishment of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government, this building once again witnessed the historic handover of power.
On October 2, 1949, the building raised a five-star red flag. The file photo is from Tongji University Press
Recently, reporters entered a building that was about to begin overall renovations. Its interior decoration is very elaborate, the floor is paved with British Mackin & Co. mosaic tiles, the main passage and escalator are made of Taikang foreign company black and white marble, the building is also equipped with an automatic telephone system, as well as a low-pressure hot water heating system designed by British engineers, materials and equipment are imported.
Standing on the European-style balcony above the main entrance of the building, the bustling scene of Jiangxi Middle Road and Hankou Road can be seen, and Einstein, who was invited to give a lecture on "The Theory of Relativity" in the building, also stood in this position. On the marble wall at the end of the corridor behind him, a stone stele is inlaid with the handwriting of Chen Yi, the first mayor of Shanghai, "Shanghai people build the people's new Shanghai according to their own will." It was also here that the leaders of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government made strategic plans, led all the people to overcome difficulties and consolidate people's power, and laid a solid foundation for Shanghai's comprehensive construction.
Stone stele inscribed with Chen Yi's handwriting. Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
Fortunately, this building, which has always been a "stronghold of organs", will be open to the public after the renovation, the interior decoration will retain its original appearance, and Chen Yi's handwriting is likely to be displayed to the public. It was identified as a demonstration project for urban renewal in Shanghai, the protective comprehensive transformation project of 160 neighborhoods in Huangpu District, and coordinated the transformation in the form of joint efforts between the city and the district. When completed in 2023, it will be transformed into a classic historical district of high-end modern service industry.
"The biggest highlight is the enclosure." Zhou Shan, project manager of Shanghai Construction Engineering Second Construction Group, the general contractor of construction, told reporters. He has led the team to the building since 2019 and has examined the historical changes here countless times. Zhou Shan said that on the original design drawings, the building was a boxy, enclosed building with no gaps, but the actual buildings left an L-shaped gap in Henan Middle Road and Fuzhou Road. It is said that one of the reasons for the lack of enclosure is the settlement of the foundation. In the comprehensive transformation, the construction party will build two new prefabricated steel structure buildings, similar to the original design drawings. "New buildings will have their own style and avoid becoming 'fake artifacts', but the old and new buildings will achieve internal structural connectivity and achieve aesthetic harmony in external architecture."
Original design drawings. The file photo is from Tongji University Press
Such buildings have even undergone "demolition and violation". In the early stage of the survey, the developer found that the architectural style of the 5th floor on the top floor of the building was slightly different from other floors, and it seemed to be built for a later period. After finding many original graphic materials and comparing them, it was found that there was no such floor when the building was completed in 1922, which was added by the former Ministry of Works to expand the office area. In the early days, the "illegal construction" was painstakingly retained, and industry insiders and experts and scholars had different opinions, and finally the developer still wanted to restore the original appearance of the building and reported to the management department to demolish it. In the future, the roof of the building will be newly built with a semi-terrace enclosed light steel structure to create a new viewing platform.
There is also a "net red" little red building in the plot, which is the largest and heaviest brick-concrete single building in the Shanghai translation project. Today, the 3,800-ton brick and wood structure with its clear-water red brick walls, red tile roofs and continuous coupon windows has been moved to the construction site 32 meters east of its original location, and has also been lifted by 0.421 meters as a whole, revealing a beautiful stone base that has been covered up for many years. When the underground work of the entire plot is completed, it will also be translated back to its original location.
The small red chamber after the residents moved out. Provided by Shanghai Construction Engineering Second Construction Group
The Little Red House was once the health department of the former Ministry of Works and Bureaus, but was later converted into a staff dormitory and was retained. When the 160 Neighborhood project was launched, the Little Red House was still a residential building and was not listed as an excellent historical building in Shanghai or entered the cultural relics list. However, after the developer recognized its historical background, it decided to retain it and carry out the protection and repair of the original site, so that it could reproduce its appearance and reshape its function.
It is very difficult to translate the "Little Red Chamber", and it is necessary to "toss" it back and forth, in order to build a new underground space, taking into account the overall construction and the repair and protection of the old building, and many technical problems need to be overcome. According to the renovation plan, three new underground spaces will be built in the plot for landscape renewal, commercial facilities and parking.
From the window of the former Ministry of Works and Bureau building, you can see the small red building that has been translated. Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
"Opening up urban open spaces under protected buildings is very difficult to construct." Zhou Shan told reporters that for example, the project is close to the rail transit Line 10 tunnel and other important municipal pipelines, the impact of deep foundation pit construction on underground structures needs to be closely monitored; the requirements for the foundation replacement technology and foundation pit deformation control of the protection building are extremely high, and the lifting and connection technology of the large-scale steel structure above the building must ensure the safety and damage of the historical building... "This is the first project of the 'second façade' of the Bund, which will surely become a benchmark in the industry after completion." ”
Renderings after completion. Provided by Shanghai Construction Engineering Second Construction Group
Shikumen Architectural Complex Zhang Yuan: "Fireworks" has attracted the attention of architects around the world
"Idle" for two and a half years, Zhang Yuan is less of the city's fireworks and more elegant and quiet.
From the intersection of Taixing Road and Wujiang Road, the steel structure arch with the word "Zhang Yuan" engraved on it enters this undeveloped plot, as if entering the old Shanghai of the 1920s and 1930s. Here is the largest existing mid-to-late Shikumen building complex in Shanghai, the continuous Qingshui red brick houses come into view, the basic pattern of the old-fashioned Shikumen has been added to the stone wall, the external wall is heavily made of stained glass and Western decorations, and almost every house has exquisite balconies and wooden shutters, symbolizing the aesthetic fashion of that era.
The picture comes from the Shangguan News WeChat public account
However, in this former "first garden on the sea", the scene of forced life revealed by the vacant houses is still beyond the imagination of reporters.
The two-story Shikumen, numbered No. 1, Lane 64, Lane 590, Weihai Road, is not particularly exquisite compared to the 13 outstanding municipal historical buildings on this plot. This is a property bought by Yang Ruisheng, the founder of Yang Ruiji Construction Factory, in the 1930s, and later a small building of 360 square meters was occupied by 10 families, with patios and sundecks full of illegal buildings.
After the expropriation was completed, the house was not demolished like other Shikumen in the plot and restored to its original state of ventilation, but retained the living pattern before the expropriation.
Weihai Road 590 Lane 64 Lane No. 1 exterior status. Provided by The Quiet Placement Industry
After "people go to the empty building", it seems that there are still traces of life with temperature, which has become a mark of history. The living conditions of the east rear wing on the first floor are particularly poor, and the wall panels of the rooms of more than ten square meters are very thin, there is no window, and it is almost "not seen". The staff of the First Collection Office in Jing'an District told reporters that the property certificate said the names of 5 people, and there were actually three members of Aunt Wang's family. The Wang family built a few square meters of attic as the bedroom of their adult daughter, climbing up and down a narrow staircase. It is said that a few years ago, Jing'an District installed miniature independent toilets for residents' homes, but some families could not even free up less than two square meters of space. Therefore, everyone is looking forward to the expropriation to improve life.
The old-fashioned furniture that the residents did not take away has also become a "precious exhibit". A pair of floral cloth sofas, a chest of drawers, an old wooden table, etc., have all been placed in place and labeled with protection labels, and may be moved into the exhibition hall for scene reproduction in the future. Protective labels are attached throughout the small building, balconies, cornices, railings, leggings, fancy wooden skirts, wall decorations, etc., which indicate the focus of protection and the person responsible for care. Not only that, but there are also many monitoring probes and sensors installed inside the building, which can monitor indoor temperature, humidity and smoke, and can also make intelligent alarm prompts.
Scenes of Zhang Yuan's life in the lens of Shanghai photographer and historical recorder Xi Zi.
The building has a "house archive" of more than 400 pages, and almost all of the original information and conservation records can be traced. The person in charge of the developer Fang Jing Resettlement Industry Group introduced that they have established "one building and one file" for the entire 174 buildings on the plot, and in the whole two years of filing time, the staff first went to the archive to retrieve a copy of the original design drawings, and then asked the professional organization to map and re-map on the ground, and model the façade. On this basis, the developer then accurately put forward suggestions for renovation and repair. The person in charge said that such a filing standard is higher than the filing standard stipulated by the Shanghai Municipal Housing Management Department, and it is also the first case in the country.
A house has such a thick "house archive". Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
When Zhang Yuan solicited protection and revitalization plans from the world's top architects, 6 participating units, including DCA Architectural Firm, Kengo Kuma Architectural Urban Design Office, and Mingyue Architectural Design Office, invariably provided suggestions for "how to retain pyrotechnic gas after 'people leave the house'". Some propose to restore the residential function of "one unit and one household" in the plot, and at the same time, in the overall business planning, also pay attention to reproducing the lifestyle of Shikumen Lane; some plans, in the creation of underground cultural and commercial space, continue the characteristics of natural lighting of the patio, open up the texture of the lane and the function of underground space; others believe that the original interval of Shikumen should be retained, and a restored original appearance should be vacated in each of the 28 different types of Shikumen for display... Although the various design schemes are "imaginative" and cannot be fully incorporated into the scheme in the end, the display of the living style of each historical period will inevitably be included in the overall planning.
Renderings of ZhangYuan after renovation. Provided by The Quiet Placement Industry
Cheonan Senki Complex: Once a Problem Becomes a "Windfall"
The large-scale commercial complex "Tian'an Qianshu" on the banks of the Suzhou River is half a phase of a shopping mall that has been built and has not yet opened to become an Internet celebrity punch card, known as Shanghai's "Ancient BabylonIan Sky Garden"; the other half is a phase II construction site scattered with four century-old protected buildings and modern high-rise buildings.
Today's Phase II site. Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
The novel shape of the building was written by Thomas, the designer of the British Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo and the British "ghost talent" designer. Its most eye-catching highlight is the national industrial relics in a total of 59,000 square meters of land. The former Fufeng Machine Flour Mill factory building, office building, the former Fuxin Flour Factory small package flour warehouse and ear room, will be reshaped and remembered in a new way.
Completed Cheonan Chiki Phase I. Provided by Putuo District
Interestingly, in 2001, Tianan Group signed a land transfer contract with Putuo District, and the Hong Kong developer did not know that there were protected buildings on the plot when it took the land, until 2004, when the relevant departments made it clear that the old site of the Fuxin Flour Mill and the former site of the Fufeng Machine Flour Mill on the plot belonged to the third batch of outstanding historical buildings in Shanghai, and later this plot was included in the first batch of China's industrial heritage protection list. The property rights of the old building belong to the Tianan Group, and the responsibility for repair and maintenance also falls on the shoulders of the enterprise.
This means that the old buildings in the plot can not be demolished, but must be repaired as old, and the new building must make room for the old building. "At that time, we had no experience, and for a while we didn't know how to deal with the relationship between the old and new buildings." Zhai Jian'an, deputy general manager of the Tianan Qianshu Project, told reporters that when repairing old buildings, designing new buildings and carrying out functional planning, they became more and more aware that the problems in their eyes at that time were really a "windfall". The more they studied old buildings, the more they felt the extraordinary value of preserving and reinventing them. "The first draft of the architectural design plan is more traditional, not attractive enough, we believe that it did not play a role in improving the landscape along the Suzhou Creek, nor did it organically combine the new and old buildings with the surrounding M50 Art Park, so the group leaders decided to overturn the original design, invited the 'ghost talent' designer to start another stove, fully combine the suzhou river landscape, and fully display the historical style of the old building."
Panorama of fuxin second, fourth and eighth flour mills. Provided by Putuo District
The reporter recently saw 4 restored old buildings on an empty construction site, which are vicissitudes and erect, as if quietly waiting to be reunited with people.
The most eye-catching is the four-storey Fufeng Machine Flour Mill factory, which was built in the 24th year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1898), with a construction area of 1045 square meters, the outer wall is Qingshui green bricks and red bricks, and the arch gate with lock stones on it has the charm of Western classical architecture. Zhai Jian'an said that Fufeng Machine Flour Factory, founded in 1898, is China's first machine flour mill created by national capital, the plant has undergone 3 expansions, once the Far East was the largest and best equipped machine flour mill. "In the future, this building may introduce high-end catering, so that people can go inside and visit the consumption."
Renovated Fufeng machine flour mill plant. Provided by Putuo District
The office building of Fufeng Machine Flour Mill can be described as the highest "value". It is a two-story brick and wood structure with Baroque decoration, which will be enclosed by the newly built Cheonan Senki Phase II building in the future, becoming the center of the atrium, and may be positioned as a display venue for art exhibitions, brand new product launches, etc.
Fufeng Machine Flour Mill Office Building. Provided by Putuo District
The two small brick and wood buildings near the bank of the Suzhou River are also "small and exquisite". Close to the river is the two-storey small building of Fuxin Flour Mill, conceived as a ticket waiting area for the yacht marina, and set up an exhibition hall to show the development history and transformation process of the flour mill; the three-story small packaging flour warehouse of Fuxin Flour Mill retained on the south side of the river, and it is planned to erect a corridor to connect with the second phase of the commercial body for commercial use.
The first thing Cheonan Group did after taking the land was to start the repair of the old building. "It was a ruin at that time", Mo Daohuang, the restoration designer of the historic preservation building, recalled the scene when he first took over the project, and after the construction personnel removed the weeds, they found that the roof was almost collapsed, the wooden beams and wooden pillars were all rotten, and if the necessary measures were not taken, they may disappear in a storm in two or three years.
Brick by brick repairs, it takes far more energy and money than it takes to build a new building. The construction party reinforced the old building in situ, maintained the structure to ensure safety, and carried out fine repairs to one external wall and one door and window after another. The entire restoration project took two years. Today, the old unused building is damaged by white ants and moist air, and it has to be maintained every year, and when the second phase of the new building is completed, it will be completely renovated again.
It is said that with the fame of Tianan Qianshu, more and more brands are approaching developers, hoping to rent old buildings to open experience stores, and Tianan Group has always maintained a "conservative" attitude towards this, hoping to find partners who are most suitable for the use of old buildings.
The first phase of the commercial body is expected to open at the end of this year. Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
"Slow-paced" development and "one step ahead" gather popularity
Before the reporter's press release, the theme exhibition of "Looking at Urban Change in Zhangyuan in a Hundred Years" held in Jing'an District in Zhangyuan Plot opened. The exhibition in Zhangyuan set aside part of the area for people to visit, just on the ground floor of No. 1 Lane 64, in the original appearance of the residents' living space, just embedded LED screen, with multimedia technology to reproduce the picture of the city life at that time. In the cherry blossom season in March this year, Cheonan Chiki Phase I, which has not yet completed the interior decoration, also held a romantic and stylish "cherry blossom market" outdoors. Take advantage of the Yoshino cherry blossoms on the Suzhou Riverside Trail to gather popularity.
Digital technology recreates Zhang Yuan's former life scenes. Luan Yinzhi was filmed on the spot
These projects, which attach equal importance to protection and renewal, have attracted much attention, with the "no rush" development rhythm on the one hand and various public events held "can't wait". Thinking about it carefully, the two approaches are not contradictory, reflecting that Shanghai's understanding is constantly enriching and deepening in the new round of practical exploration of historical buildings and style protection.
Behind the seeming "rush to show people", there is actually meticulous and rigorous protection and planning. During the interview, the reporter deeply felt that under the concept of "integration of new and old", retaining the original historical style has become a prerequisite for urban renewal and land transformation and development. Before the completion of the plan, it has become a consensus not to move brick by brick, carefully protect the historical context, and carefully preserve cultural memory.
Zhang Yuan's "one building and one file" plan is the first case in the country. Provided by The Quiet Placement Industry
In the case of Zhang Yuan, in the future, not only will the original texture and spatial scale of the lane be completely maintained, but also the old bricks and tiles on the Shiku gate and even the grass that grows naturally on the door head will be retained; and in the process of "repairing the old as old" of the original Ministry of Works and Bureau Building, the twist-shaped rebar and wood-framed old-fashioned elevator tracks that are rare today in the hidden project have also been protected and archived one by one for future external exhibition. At the same time, the developer also knows that as important as "protection" and "excavation", there is also "activation", and only by integrating history with today's life can the heritage of old buildings be passed on and truly play a valuable role.
In addition, all three projects are involved in the development of underground space without exception. The underground space will not only undertake functions such as underground transportation transfer and above-ground vitality continuation, but also take into account people's diversified needs such as shopping and leisure. In the interview, many technical leaders invariably said that the excavation and utilization of existing land resources must be an important trend in the urban renewal process of Shanghai. However, at present, the underground space development technology of domestic historical buildings is in its infancy, there are few engineering cases that can be learned, and the design concept and technical system are still being studied and explored.
The difficulty of underground space development is that single historical buildings generally require the protection of the original site, and are not allowed to be demolished or moved, and the interior of the building is small, and the construction process is like a "dojo in a snail shell"; and for the protection and development of pieces of historical landscape protection areas with narrow streets and high building density, it is facing many technical obstacles. Some people in charge of the plot told reporters that they are exploring micro-perturbation and low-impact development technologies, further expanding into deep space other than shallow space development, and will also explore the comprehensive utilization of space, so that the underground space becomes an organic whole with a flexible combination of points, lines, surfaces, bodies and other forms.
Wu Jiang, vice chairman of the China Urban Planning Society and professor of Tongji University, proposed that the fundamental way out of historical protection lies in the appropriate use of historical space and the revitalization of historical space. Architectural protection is different from the protection of general cultural relics, the life of buildings lies in use, so it is often necessary to re-implant new functions, so that urban renewal follows the development law of the city as an "organism".
This year's cherry blossom season in Cheonan Senki Phase 1 building. Provided by Cheonan Group
Column Editor-in-Chief: Gong Danyun Text Editor: Luan Yinzhi
Source: Author: Luan Yinzhi