SWA Group Project in Beijing Awarded Prestigious 2008 Urban Land Institute Global Award for Excellence
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Beijing Finance Street's Design Recognized as an Innovative Model for Mixed-Use Urban Sites
SAUSALITO, CA--(Marketwire - December 10, 2008) -
SWA Group's project, Beijing Finance Street, was selected as one of five winning developments in the Urban Land Institute's (ULI) Global Awards for Excellence competition, widely recognized as the land use industry's most prestigious recognition program. SWA projects have been honored with four ULI Awards for Excellence in the past three years including prior winners Victoria Gardens, Hangzhou Hubin Redevelopment, Luohu Station and now Beijing Finance Street. Earlier this year, Beijing Finance Street also won the Business Week/Architectural Record China Award.
The Awards for Excellence program, established in 1979, is based on ULI's guiding principle that the achievement of excellence in land use should be recognized and rewarded. An Award for Excellence recognizes the full development process of a project, not just its architecture or design. The criteria include leadership, contribution to the community, innovations, public/private partnership, environmental protection and enhancement, response to societal needs, and financial success.
Just blocks from the Forbidden City, Beijing Finance Street establishes a new nerve center for China's growing economy. This city within a city -- 35 city blocks organized along a central, meandering green space -- creates a new, influential model for the country with a sustainable, transit-oriented, mixed-use district for the financial leadership of China.
SWA was invited by the building architect, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), to prepare landscape master planning and implementation documents. The master plan is based on a sustainable approach emphasizing the public's enjoyment of the space. SWA's work paralleled that of SOM and integrated urban design and landscape architecture into the overall design's physical and cultural structure. Approximately 30% of the project is located over a garage and required special accommodations for planting depths and waterproofing needs.
The 2008 Global Awards for Excellence winners were selected by a jury of renowned land use development and design experts led by Jury Chair, Jeremy Newsum, group chief executive, Grosvenor, London.
"The Awards for Excellence program celebrates the creativity, vision, and best practices in land use," Newsum said. "These projects not only represent the best of the best, but demonstrate a relevance to the communities in which they are located."
The 2008 global winners were selected from world-wide finalists which were already regional winners in the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. The global awards jury evaluated the projects with additional criteria, including: innovative concepts that can be emulated around the world; strong urban design; response to the surrounding environment; and design that contributes to a livable, sustainable development that demonstrates relevance to the needs of the community.
Historically, Beijing's gardens have been secluded behind imperial walls or private residences. Beijing Finance Street changed that. Focused on a central park known as "the heart" of Western Beijing, the 100-acre project provides generous open space and a functional court for the district. Referencing traditional Chinese garden design, the development's architecture and landscape are artfully woven together. Building facades are often reflected in the landscape's water features or tree patterns. By replicating the built forms, these natural design elements help give the area a unified face.
The Beijing Finance Street's design concept -- architecture inside landscape and landscape inside architecture -- is a contemporary interpretation of the "borrowed landscape" tradition. The design incorporates "borrowed landscape" concepts in four specific ways: scenery overlapping scenery; gardens within gardens; water cascading and water reflecting; planting and the changing seasons. Through its unique combination of contemporary landscape design and traditional Chinese garden philosophy, the Beijing Finance Street Park creates an international destination that reflects the city's cultural identity.
SWA Group ( www.swagroup.com ), established in 1957, is an international landscape architecture, planning and urban design firm. Headquarters are in Sausalito, CA, with other offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Laguna Beach, CA, Dallas, Houston and Shanghai. Since its inception, SWA Group has worked in over 50 countries, and its projects have garnered more than 500 awards.
Formed in 1936, the Urban Land Institute ( www.uli.org ) is a nonprofit education and research institute with more than 40,000 members representing all aspects of land use and development.
Contact: Ron Heckmann
510-652-5800
ron@heckmanncommunications.com
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