Haishang Plaza: A New Landmark in Zhengzhou City

Mixed-Use Architecture by Nonchi Wang and Luoya Tu

Located in an old residential district, Haishang Plaza is envisioned to be a premier shopping and entertainment destination. The design incorporates a mixed-use program including SOHO, LOFT towers, an indoor shopping mall, and a large outdoor lifestyle plaza. This unique combination is committed to bringing vitality to the community and creating a new business model.

The design of Haishang Plaza is a testament to modern architectural technology. The use of glass fiber reinforced gypsum, glass fiber reinforced concrete, curved ETFE system, aluminum panel, curtain wall glazing systems, sustainable green roof system, and low-carbon transportation, all contribute to the realization of this architectural marvel.

The design's unique properties lie in its terraced massing design which focuses on drawing pedestrians into its spaces by stepping back its corners and breaking down the urban fabric to human scale. This gesture creates prominent entrances into the plaza, while increasing street frontage visibility of the main shopping mall and the lifestyle retail. The addition of residential towers allows the client the ability to presell units to finance the construction of the mixed-use project.

Despite the challenges faced during the design process, the team managed to create a model that offers a more suitable business model for the client’s needs. This design is more pedestrian-friendly, offers a larger variety of program, and introduces a new type of 24/7 walkable retail. The sales of the residential units allowed the client to finance the construction of the project and reduce their own financial investment.

Haishang Plaza was awarded Silver in A' Architecture, Building and Structure Design Award in 2020. This prestigious award is rewarded to top-of-the-line, creative, and professionally remarkable designs that illustrate outstanding expertise and innovation. These designs, admired for their strong technical characteristics and splendid artistic skill, showcase a remarkable level of excellence and introduce positive feelings, amazement, and wonder.