Standing Out at the Edge of Beijing
Vanke Co., Ltd, Beijing East Park
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Taihu, China | 2.7 Million SF
The site plan breaks the grid to create a more compelling pedestrian experience.
From feasibility to design and construction, GBBN worked with Vanke—one of the world’s largest housing developers—to determine the best approach for adding 2,800 units of housing along with retail, public space, and community amenities to this undeveloped piece of Beijing’s Fifth Ring.
The site as a whole is organized around five residential blocks, each of which features five to eight apartment towers in a park-like setting. Central to it all, a town square offers essential services for new residents – a school, commercial and retail spaces, sunken gardens, and spaces for the community to gather.
Subtle gradations of color and shifting building orientations allow East Park to unfold in front of visitors.
What really sets this development apart is its site strategy and use of color. Typically, in a development like this one, every building would be oriented toward the street, facing due South. At East Park some do that, but others pivot for more eastern or western exposure. This breaks the monotony of the grid and enables residents to experience the size and form of the buildings differently.
For residents and visitors at the ground level, this contributes to the sense that the site is unfolding before them. Subtle gradations of color within a limited palette allowed by local regulations also reinforce the hierarchy and variety of buildings, foregrounding some and causing others to recede.
GBBN also designed the City Lights Exhibition Hall to help market these apartments to future residents.
Basketball courts, playgrounds, sunken gardens, and other ground-level amenities create a park-like setting around the residences.