Transforming industrial heritage sites in major Chinese cities : reintegrating Minsheng Wharf into the life of the city

China is a nation evolving through post-industrialization towards a cultural and innovation based society. In turn, its urban form is grappling with a number of preserved industrial heritage sites in major urban centers such as Beijing and Shanghai. The People's Republic of China has implemented policy through a culture-led approach in preservation and reuse, resulting in artist communities, museums, and creative offices. However, these sites have either become artifacts frozen in time or heavily commercialized tourist attractions that threaten to displace the creativity within. This thesis investigates alternative approaches to preservation and reuse of these sites, especially how to integrate 21st century productive uses as a means of urban regeneration. The spirit of industriousness can be preserved within these sites by allowing new productive activities to occur. There is potential to bring high-tech industries into these sites which can benefit from the existing creative environment while increasing longterm economic viability and promote innovation. Collaboration is needed between the government and private developers to control the development direction of the site while allowing flexibility for innovative solutions. Opportunities exist in industrial heritage sites in major Chinese cities today that can bring them back into the life of the city.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2016

Author dc:creator

• Lü, Yifei

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Dennis Frenchman and Andrea Chegut.

• Urban Studies and Planning.
• Center for Real Estate. Program in Real Estate Development.

Statement dc:rights

• MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/107572

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/107572