<QSPKFDUOFXT><QSPKFDUOFXT>TWO TOWERS – GUANGZHOU
BUSINESS HUB – SHENZHEN
Architectural practice Henning Larsen is one of three selected to collaborate on the design of a new waterfront business district in the South China
city. Shenzhen’s existing business hub is some distance from the waterfront; the new development, named Shenzhen Bay Headquarters City, will fill
that in-between space, creating a new mega-district that extends to the water. “Our design aims to make Shenzhen the waterfront city it should always
have been,” says Claude Godefroy, design director of Henning Larsen’s Hong Kong office. “To create an attractive waterfront we brought commercial
and cultural facilities meters away from the seashore, so citizens will finally be able to enjoy the atmosphere of Shenzhen Bay in an activated urban
environment, like in Sydney, Singapore or Copenhagen.” The 5.5 million sqm scheme will comprise a number of towers varying in height, and will
create a “pedestrian urban realm” in which automobiles have been relegated to an underground network of slip roads and carparks. “Most of the
commuters’ cars will never surface in the district,” adds Godefroy. “This will change everything for the quality of the pedestrian experience and will
be quite unique in China.” There is as well a plan to plant 10,000 trees within the district, which will provide shade while also mitigating noise and
air pollution.Hong Kong architects 10 Design are designing a new landmark in the Pearl River Delta city.
Situated in the Pazhou business district, the development, named Huabang International Centre,
comprises two conjoined skyscrapers, the taller of which will rise to a height of 130 metres. One of
the towers will house the headquarters of Chinese firm Huabang; the other will contain a five-star
hotel and serviced apartments. The two sides of the towers that face each other will be stepped at
the highest floors, where there will be a series of outdoor terraces. The buildings will be connected
near the top by a large sky deck with a roof garden. “Rising above the sky deck is the ‘vertical green
valley’, the inspiration of which unifies the two towers with a series of stepping green terraces
cascading towards the bridge, unifying the overall composition,” says 10 Design design partner Nick
Cordingley. “The stepping terraces at the upper level then set the rhythm of the main facades of the
two towers, allowing the vertical lines to be articulated in the face of the facade.” The project is well
under way.