Community Hall: Renovation of Wenxin Park, Shenzhen

” Shenzhen is developing from a city of a thousand gardens to a city of various community parks, which have been nourishing the daily life of urban residents. Wenxin Park, located in the center of Nanshan district and near the north of Nanshan Book City, fully demonstrates what a beautiful life is in nature. Surrounded by the amenity of greenery, children play happily, adults work out to keep fit, while the elderly sings and dances under the trees. The park is very popular to all ages from dawn to dusk. Located at the intersection of Nanhai Avenue and Binhai Avenue, Wenxin Park is adjacent to Nanshan Book City. It has a strong cultural atmosphere, complete commercial facilities, and dense residential communities, which makes it a daily leisure destination for residents in the central area of Nanshan District. Wenxin Park is the core of a high-density construction area Originally built in 2004, Wenxin park has been developing with the city for almost two decades. The little trees have already grown into a forest, the number of users has been rising, and the demands for park functions have become increasingly diversified. However, the wild shrubs under the trees occupied the activity spaces, so there were always conflicts among people for sports, leisure, social and childcare due to lack of space. With the advancement of the construction of Shenzhen Park City, and to meet people’s growing visions for a better life and give the park a new connotation of the times, Shenzhen Nanshan District Urban Management and Comprehensive Law Enforcement Bureau carried out the upgrade and renovation work. Community parks in the urban core tend to be more closely related to surrounding neighborhoods. The park is not only a green boundary, but a life carrier for integration into the development of the city and neighborhoods from a regional perspective. The road green space is fully integrated with the park green space, expanding the park's usable area, which is the first step for Wenxin Park to integrate into the city. After multiple coordination, the land temporarily occupied by the metro superstructure on the west side was formally incorporated into the park, providing space for possible functional expansion. By analyzing traffic flow and user characteristics, the Binhai Avenue auxiliary road, overpass, and Nanhai Avenue are integrated to form an external loop, which is designed with the park. The designing team also optimized the project construction sequence to reduce the impact on the surrounding life. The beauty of the park unfolds from the street interface. The pedestrian paths are integrated into park boundaries with balanced and appropriate scales, pure materials, and unified design language. Eight entrances invite urban residents to actively participate in the park life and enjoy the park’s high quality. Overlooking the park, the woods surround the central lawn, like the hand of nature offering a free paradise to the city. The renovation plan still places the lawn at the heart of the park, and completes the design without reducing its usable area. At the same time, the lawn blends with the trees, and its infiltration function of the lawn is improved. Users of all ages could find their favorite usages here, which are compatible with each other and allow to maintain the "niche" of various groups of people. The Inkstone reshapes the core of the lawn as a work of public art As children's playground, the changing terrain and curved surfaces welcome children to climb freely. There are about 500 original trees preserved in the park, its canopy provides natural shelter during the long summer days in Shenzhen. The design values every tree in the park, allowing them to grow freely and demonstrating their beauty, so as to form a continuous image for immersive experience. According to different life scenarios, the under-forest, forest edge, and space between trees create more open green space, which stimulates the participation of more users. No need to retouch, give the trees beautiful stages again The perimeter of the lawn is wooded, with a tall canopy stretching in all directions, activating the forest edge. Below the forest edge, the ground shrubs are cleared and a combination of stone seating and streamlined lounge seating is added. The forest edge resembles a frame to create a beautiful view of the lawn. Framed by a forest edge, the large tree shelters create a lawn park life picture Between the green woods and the lawns, the jogging and walking routes are designed anywhere, subtly integrated into nature. At the same time, it maximizes the length of the 3m wide loop track, and the 1. 8m wide trail connects the activity spaces of each group. The two-level path effectively solves right-of-way conflicts inside the park Separation roads for fast and slow functions Using the original shrub space, and among the undulating terrain, a powerless playground under the woods is created for children. The boundary is decorated with arrays of plants, and the grey-yellow-orange plastic mats provide a safe activity space, and the slender white steel frame weaves through the forest in an S-shape. The designs shows a great care for children with its appropriate color scheme and an innovative design, and safety is the bottom line throughout all the details. Children's playground shows the aesthetics and quality The multi-place swings, bouncy trampoline, merry-go-round, and multi-functional sports climbing frame keep children entertained. In the midst of movement and stillness, they could be enlightened and improve their physical functions, and continue to explore the boundaries of their abilities. Parents are both comfortable guardians and active participants. The place gently invites them to spend quality time with their children and make sweet memories. A playground provides childhood fun for children The shade is the most vivid environment in the forest. The sun shines through the forest, falling broken and flickering, where people also become more energetic. It is most suitable for fitness under the shade of trees. There are soft mats with pleasant colors. And diverse facilities are equipped to attract more passers-by. Exercise is magical, and its fun is far spreading, which helps the venue become the focal point of the vitality of the park. the smart fitness service specialist in the woods, The plaza in front of the veranda is integrated with the activity platform to form a park living room, a back garden, and a patio courtyard, which has become the social center of the park. Sitting under the veranda, watching trees, flowers and water, playing chess or cards, or simply chatting, reading and doing Tai Chi, the elderly, the adult, and the children, all can enjoy themselves harmoniously. The plaza in front of the gallery becomes the living room of the park The porch back garden works as a social garden Tall trees lushly form a natural dome. Turning the slightly sloping terrain into a natural stone collage of stacking benches, reshaping the dense ground cover into an undergrowth terrace, and adding linear lighting as decoration, all these measures transformed the formerly unusable space into a multifunctional mini-theatre. Different activities such as senior citizens' orchestra, community films, park promotions, and a children's stage play take place here, which have greatly enhanced the park's activity experience. A multi-purpose amphitheater, lit by starlight at night, creates an ethereal atmosphere The original corner pond is transformed into a resilient dry stream landscape, where the topography is integrated with the forest landscape, the gravels help to precipitate and filter the water, and the water-resistant wet plants form ecological berms, enriching the landscape effects and realizing the sponge function. In the daytime, the sky is changing with lights and clouds, and at night, insects and frogs chirp in the stream. The fragrance, lights, and plants ease the fatigue of high-pressure workers. It is also a popular place for children to play in the water, catching fish and shrimps, which allows them to enjoy a worry-free childhood similar to that of their parents. Stroll along the stream, feed the fish at the bridge, and enjoy the morning sun in the woods The stream and mist system make a natural playground for children Beautiful and functional creek landscape