Speaker
Description
Background:
Modernist urban planning has profoundly shaped urban environments during global urbanization, emphasizing functional zoning, large-scale land parcels, and rapid transit systems. In China, the extensive construction of new towns since the 1990s has been guided by modernist planning principles and executed via regulatory detailed planning. While this approach has facilitated rapid growth, it has also exposed significant deficiencies in spatial quality and long-term sustainability. As a hallmark of this development model, large-scale gated residential communities face critical challenges related to spatial characteristics, functionality, environmental impact, social interaction, and urban identity, highlighting the urgent need for innovative reform (International Panel on Social Progress, 2018).
Purpose:
Despite extensive critique and revision of modernist urban planning concepts within academic discourse, practical applications for transforming large-scale and low-density residential areas remain scarce (Wu et al., 2021). This study seeks to translate these theoretical advancements into urban regeneration practices, addressing the prevalent challenges faced by new residential areas in China. Utilizing the “urban cells” theory as a framework (Cai and Xu, 2021), it aims to explore strategies for the re-urbanization of large-scale gated communities.
Methods:
Through theoretical analysis, case studies, and a spatial transformation design experiment in the core area of Shanghai New Jiangwan Town, this study investigates the theoretical significance and practical approaches to spatial transformation in contemporary large-scale communities.
Figure 1: Status of New Jiangwan Town
Results:
At the theoretical level, a comparative analysis of modernist planning principles and sustainable, human-centered approaches reveals the advantages and operational challenges of adopting models such as mixed-use functions, dense grids, and small blocks. It further highlights the "urban cells" theory as a critical framework for analyzing modernist urban issues.
At the case study level, the analysis of exemplary urban spaces and residential areas clarifies the spatial logic of "Plot-Building-Block-District" and identifies the key characteristics of vibrant, sustainable districts. Furthermore, by examining cases of urban space reconstruction, the study explores densification strategies for spatial transformation and categorizes specific operational patterns.
At the design research level, this study proposes a reconstruction plan for the core area of New Jiangwan Town. Based on the analysis of urban cells, the study modifies the scales of cell units (community blocks) and cell interstices (street spaces), employing a densification strategy to reshape the urban structure and foster vibrant districts. Additionally, the study examines technical challenges in implementation, including ownership changes, legal conflicts, financial burdens, and social frictions, to enhance the operability of the proposed scheme.
Figure 2: Reconstruction Experiment of New Jiangwan Town
Conclusions:
Within the context of China's urban regeneration, this study critically examines large-scale gated residential communities shaped by modernist planning principles, directing the urban design perspective toward spatial quality and sustainable development. In practical terms, the design experiment uses Shanghai New Jiangwan Town as an example to validate the technical feasibility of spatial transformation in large residential areas, demonstrating the broader applicability of spatial densification strategies and the "urban cells" theory. The findings offer both theoretical insights and practical recommendations for the future reconstruction of large-scale gated communities worldwide, contributing to the broader discourse on sustainable urban regeneration.
References
Cai, Y. and Xu, K. (2021) Recreating Lujiazui. Shanghai: Tongji University Press.
International Panel on Social Progress (2018) Rethinking society for the 21st century: Volume 1, socio-economic transformations. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.
Wu, Z., Yang, L., Xu, K., Zhang, J. and Antwi-Afari, M.F. (2021) Key factors of opening gated community in urban area: A case study of China, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(7), p.3401.
| Keywords | Modernist planning; Large-scale gated communities; Urban cells; Scale optimization; Densification |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
