LOCATION: Siming District ,Xiamen, Fujian
AREA: 10.8ha
DATE OF COMPLETION: 2017


Built in 1927, Xiamen Zhongshan Park was the first park in Xiamen and one of the earliest urban parks in China. It is named after Dr. Sun Yat-Sen (1866-1925), a Chinese politician who established the Republic of China by overthrowing the rule of China's last emperor. The park, carrying collective memories of several generations, has witnessed the history of Xiamen and has been regarded as a cultural symbol of the city.

From the beginning of the park’s construction, the overall spatial layout and structure’s style were a combination of Chinese and Western aesthetics. The park has undergone several phases of renovation that has resulted in the constant changing of its style and layout. Currently, the park covers an area of 10.8 hectares. It is located in the center of the old town, surrounded by a dense population and urban environment. The nearby residents are mostly elderly people. In addition, it is close to a secondary school, an elementary school, and a kindergarten.

There are two main landscape futures on the existing site. These include the wooded grassland in the southern part of the park and the other is water and islands in the north. The oldest heritage element in the park is the stone inscriptions on the southwestern knoll, which is older than the park and has been in existence for more than 150 years. There are many historical elements such as entrance gates, bridges, pavilions, and balustrades. Although most of them are not the originals from when the park was first built, they still impress visitors with the Chinese architectural style of the early 20th century and display the park’s rich history. Copses of flourishing significant trees make the park into an oasis in the city center, deaden traffic noise and reduce air pollution. The park’s recreational activities are extremely diverse, including activities such as walking, exercising, outdoor board gaming and card playing, dancing, dating, boating, children's play space and public art exhibitions. There is even a zoo of about 6,000 m² in the northeastern park. For more than 90 years since its establishment, the park has been an important place for public recreation in the dense urban center. For the population in Xiamen, the park has become a collective memory of citizens and a part of their lives.

However, this historic and valuable park was challenged with a range of issues. Some early buildings were poorly maintained and in bad condition. In addition, the multiple architectural styles of some later buildings are not cohesive, particularly several awkward buildings built in the 1980s which further displayed the disjoined style in the park's typology. The existing park zoning is incoherent. Many facilities and spaces have progressively been built to meet growing needs, without meticulous spatial planning for the future. The existing playground occupied an island area and was outdated, unattractive and underutilized. The old narrow zoo cages were small, inadequate and visually unappealing. The park lacked attractive spaces for activities and resting, lacked an administration building. The entire park had a wide variety of pavement styles. Most of the pavers were cracked, bumpy, and unsuitable for disable access and by modern park standards. The existing trees are very well established, providing dense shade, but also increased the difficulty of the renewal. Some storm water pipes directly connected to the lake, resulting in water pollution. Subsequently, the spatial layout of the park is chaotic and disjointed. The challenge of the renewal was to link precincts and regenerate the popular park with new facilities.  

After receiving the design brief, the design team firstly conducted a comprehensive survey of the buildings, bridges, sculptures, waterfront balustrades, recreational and play facilities, paths, paved areas, and vegetation in the park, and made a series of assessments on their age, historical background, and current conditions, etc. For different situations, corresponding strategies were put forward, including:

1.    Protect and renovate historic buildings, structures, and memorials.
2.    Retain some buildings which were suitable for the overall tone of the park and in good condition.
3.    Demolish dilapidated buildings, reconstruct if it is necessary.
4.    Change most of the pavement into smooth, eco-friendly and water-permeable pavement.
5.    Replace old and uncomfortable benches and add more park furniture to rest on.
6.    Rebuild the entire Children's Island, replace the outdated carnival rides by creating more attractive and interactive play facilities.
7.    Renovate the zoo, rebuild the entrance gate, administration shed, and zoo cages, and expand the paved area for more visitors.
8.    Retain the existing significant trees and increase shade-tolerant understory plants.
9.    Improve water quality by cleaning silt in the water, intercepting sewage from the lake and growing aquatic plants.

Through the transformation, the park not only retains original features but also presents a new aspect. The historic buildings and bridges have been well protected and restored, and the waterfront balustrade has been repaired. By replacing a part of enclosed walls with an open platform and removing thick shrubs, the existing hidden knoll with the precious stone inscritions reveals itself and gives more people the opportunity to notice the city's history and culture. More pieces of comfortable outdoor furniture are installed. For example, the enjoyable wooden benches replace the existing concrete ones. The number of recreational spaces has been increased in order to introduce more activities to the park. Vegetated buffers separate different programed spaces to make them more flexible and better used. The lighting system was overhauled and new lights in a 1920s style were designed, make the experience of the park at night spectacular.

The renovated ‘Children's Island’ and Zoo has become the most popular space in the park. ‘Children's Island’ creates a playing paradise for kids. According to different needs of various age groups of children, there are a wealth of recreational equipment and sports facilities, such as a maze, sand pits, paddling pool, climbing net, playing slides, tree houses, roller skating area, basketball court, etc. Meanwhile, a green roof and transparent glass façades are applied to the new service building to conceal it in the wider park environment.

In the ‘zoo area’, larger and more spacious cages provide a better living environment for animals. A new sewage system ensures cleanliness of all cages. New glass fences allow visitors to observe displaying animals better while preventing tourists from feeding them. Larger paved areas keep the park from being overcrowded even on public holidays, and benches under trees, make people feel comfortable to linger in the park. Without increasing the zoo area, effective spatial zoning increases the cage area and provides offices and changing rooms for zoo staff. The style of new structures is inspired by the historic buildings and coordinates the overall tone of the park.

In the transformation of Xiamen Zhongshan Park, designers adopted methods of careful protection and bold innovation, so that the park retains the collective memories of several generations，but also presents a brand new aspect. Since the park’s reopening, it has become a hotspot and attracts a large number of people from morning till night, every day. It provides public spaces for all ages, from newborn babies to lethargic elders. It is a city ‘meeting room’ where people live, socialize, gain health, joy, and pleasant memories.