Text description provided by the architects
At 156 Fushi Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing, there is apiece of vacant land that has been abandoned for more thantwo years. I have looked at this ruin from a distance morethan once, nostalgic for its former appearance and longingfor its future glory. Until one day, the place wasrevitalized and became a paradise full of laughter. Bathedin the afterglow of the setting sun,Children with barefeet wading in the happiest splash of childhood. Oldpeople strolling leisurely with shaking their fans. Inthe circular and reapeating days, such a place, allowing youto leave behind the usual worries, to encounter unexpectedsurprises, to discover the place where dreams begin. From “break” to “stand” is bound to be accompanied by softpain. More or more surprises after therebirth. The project site was originally located inBeijing’s Shijingshan District in the Laoshan MorningMarket, which was densely populated with street vendors,crowded with people, and exposed to the safety hazards of220 kV high-voltage towers that brought trouble to thesurrounding residents. Meanwhile, just four kilometers tothe west of the site, Shougang Western Ten Winter OlympicPlaza has already taken shape, with the 2022 Beijing WinterOlympic Organizing Committee and numerous Winter Olympicvenues about to be settled. In the context of thecity’s rapid development, this place gradually becomes outof place. In 2018, the Beijing Public Space Urban Design Competition,co-organized by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Planningand Natural Resources, the Beijing Municipal Commission ofDevelopment and Reform, and the Beijing Municipal Commissionof Urban Management, brought this long-abandoned site backinto the spotlight. In the competition, L&A Designwon the best award for “Stitching the City – Bajiao NewParadise”, which also opened a new story of the site. Facing the special location of the main road of the WinterOlympics, the restrictions of high-voltage towers, and theneeds of the residents of Bajiao Street, how to bring theWinter Olympics spirit and winter Olympic sports into thecommunity, while optimizing the urban space and improvingthe quality of life of the residents? We finallydecided to reshape the site and create a new look forBajiao. The site is divided into two areas, north and south,according to whether it is suitable for activities. The mainactivity space and the main large tree planting are setoutside the 15-meter range line of the high-voltage tower,while the highest structure in the site does not exceed 10meters. The design unites various green spaces and facilities in thesurrounding area to form a pan-octagonal park system,bringing residents who are cut off from each other into thepublic space without barriers through a stitching citydesign, planting the seeds of Winter Olympic sports in thehearts of children, and allowing 15,000 citizens in sevensurrounding communities to have parks to visit and sports toparticipate in within 500 meters of their homes. The Birth of Paradise,From Laoshan Morning Market toParadise for All,From High Voltage Corridor to WinterOlympic Stadium,Day and Night in the Bajiao amusementpark,Igniting another kind of fireworks. Theabandoned site was transformed into Beijing’s firsthigh-quality Winter Olympics-themed civic recreation park,energizing the site and the city as a whole with aninteractive and shared governance model. For the residentswho live in Beijing’s Bajiao Street, a whole new culture andstory, has begun. An iconic structure, the heart of the entire site, we hope tosee it when driving through from Fushi Road, as a highlighton the main road leading to the Olympic OrganizingCommittee. Looking south from Fushi Road, through the faint greenery,the structure in the shape of “snow mountain” and“snowflake” inspired by the elements of the Winter Olympicsjumps out at you. Using snow mountains as the designinspiration for the ice and snow theme, for the use ofdifferent age groups, set up a safe climbing, slides andother game space, the use of the “snow mountain” image ofthe structure, the design of the viewing platform, the useof fog spray, projection lighting and other technologicalelements to create a dream scene of the ice and snow world. The interior space of the Snow Mountain structure has beencreated as a “Snow Mountain Classroom” to provide morepossibilities for neighborhood socialization. Communityconcerts, science classes, Picture Book reading area ……People are constantly creating new ways of using andactivities here. When night falls, from Fushi Road, thesnowy mountain under the waterline light reveals a lightblue glow, full of peace and calm. It is important for the site to create the atmosphere andstate in mind to play the games, not to design specificdetails of the game in a particular way. In our space,we gather all the love of children, but also let the adultsreturn to childhood.