Shenyang Vanke Xihe Yougu Park

Vanke Xihe Yougu Park in the Sino-German sector of Shenyang's Tiexi New District is a 23,357-square-meter waterfront public landscape designed by the Shenyang office of LAURASTAR Design for client Shenyang Vanke Wanxi Enterprise Management. The surrounding commercial streets and residential communities carry a strong German character, and the narrow Xihe River, nicknamed the Fairy River, flows quietly beside them, evoking the mood of a Rhine-side town. Drawing on that romantic atmosphere, the design extends a German fairy-tale sensibility through five themed spaces that link the residential district, the city street, and the forest park while raising the quality of urban public space and emphasizing child-friendly play. The first arrival point is the Triangle Chapel of Light, a minimalist triangular structure reflected in a 390-square-meter still water surface. Colored light passes through iridescent openings, casting shifting patterns on the white interior walls like a rose window, while layered curved walls on both sides embrace the chapel with a solemn, ceremonial air. Beyond it lies the Riverside Dock, a stepped descent past a circular plaza inscribed with German folk-ballad lyrics, where banded lounge chairs face the water and a musical fountain comes alive at sunset to the sound of Bremen Town Musicians melodies. Further along the riverside path sits the Forest Cottage, a German-style blue wooden house that embodies a childlike, unhurried way of life, with rough-stone low walls and simple timber benches under the trees. The Oasis Adventure zone is a multi-functional nature-play space built around existing mature trees, using natural wooden equipment for exploration, science education, and parent-child interaction. The Castle Playground, inspired by Germany's Neuschwanstein Castle, anchors a grassy valley as the visual focus; the 18-meter-high structure serves children aged six to twelve with long slides, swinging seats, and a ring-shaped elevated walkway connecting play modules. The design balances green ecology with child-friendly programming, turning the site into a popular weekend destination and a model for Shenyang's park-city initiative. Project details are limited in the source material.