More than 20 years ago, Shenzhen was a small fishing village called Bao'an. It was renamed when the Special Economic Zone was built next to Hong Kong.
The Shenzhen Bao'an master plan stretches along a 4km coastline, occupying 640 hectares. Centred upon a reclaimed harbour, it will be Shenzhen's only waterfront CBD and the gateway for the Shenzhen International Airport.
The plan transform an urban zone into a water environment, incorporating local, national, cultural and historical references. It provides approximately 3,000,000 sqm of accommodation for office, commercial, hotel and residential uses, all within a green and spacious environment in which arts and crafts will be able to flourish.
The focus is a central green axis for which the inspiration was the form of a dragon. The spine of the dragon becomes a pedestrian route that links the significant parts of the site. In some places the spine is at ground level, in others it rises and falls above and below ground, reflecting the qualities of the Great Blue Dragon and in the process becoming a symbolically charged 'ribbon of discovery'. The torso of the dragon is transformed into a linear body of water connecting all parts of the site.
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