THE YOUNG CITY

Located in Chongqing, China Overseas Chunhua Shangcheng leverages the region’s dramatic elevation differences to create a mountain-style community landscape that reconnects residents with nature. Rather than relying on superficial symbolism or commercial tropes, the project addresses concrete challenges—such as vertical circulation, site fragmentation, and visual pressure—through deliberate and human-centered spatial interventions. The design employs “Chongqing-style garden craftsmanship” to resolve complex elevation issues across a site with a maximum 35-meter height difference. Through carefully layered platforms, terraced gardens, and direct elevators, the designers transform topographical constraints into spatial assets. Three major terraces formed by tall retaining walls were redesigned as oxygen-rich green valleys, softening hard edges with hanging greenery and cascading waters to form immersive, walkable environments. Landscaped platforms with varied heights incorporate forest balconies, ridge trails, and fluid sightlines that introduce views from the adjacent park into the community. The design seamlessly connects vertical nodes using multi-level pathways, bridges, and plant-covered slopes, ensuring accessibility and cohesion across the site. A major feature is the transformation of challenging edge conditions into poetic experiences. For example, the Flying Elephant Park connects two fire-rescue zones separated by a 7-meter drop. Here, the designers addressed vertical movement, wall concealment, and play integration simultaneously, creating a Disney-style children’s playground that encourages exploration and imagination. Sustainability and ecological sensitivity are embedded in the design through the use of native and seasonal vegetation. Vertical greening techniques, such as soft-hanging terraces and plant-integrated retaining walls, restore disturbed landforms and transform previously scarred slopes—left from mountain blasting—into green “bandages” that symbolize ecological healing. Public and semi-private spaces along circulation routes serve multiple functions: enhancing wayfinding, increasing interaction, and providing visual and sensory relief. The use of multi-sensory planting, natural textures, and elevation-framed viewpoints encourages emotional resonance with the landscape and enhances the daily living experience. Through precise terrain reading, refined detailing, and a strong sense of local identity, the project turns elevation challenges into layered spatial narratives. It creates a community where architecture, landscape, and topography interact harmoniously, forming a mountain dwelling experience that is functional, poetic, and deeply rooted in place.