Chongqing- Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality launched a groundbreaking ceremony for an urban renewal project for the acceleration of the international consumption center city recently.

The project is to transform Changan Automobile's old factory area with commercial and cultural elements, offer visitors new experiences of automobile culture and military history.

A new storyteller

The project is located in Jiangbei District, close to Guanyinqiao, one of the local most famous commercial business districts. Covering an area of 200,000 square meters, it is the largest and broadest commercial area in southwestern China. This new project is a major municipal project jointly promoted by Jiangbei District and Changan Automobile in urban renewal. With a total investment worth 20.8 billion yuan (about 3.1 billion U.S. dollars), the whole construction is divided into three phases, of which the first phase will be about 12.1 billion yuan.

The project will become an architectural storyteller to narrate the history of Changan Automobile and its stories. Changan's early development can be traced back to 1862 when the Shanghai Marine Artillery Bureau was created. In 1937, the factory was moved to Chongqing. In 1959, its predecessor Chongqing Chang'an Arsenal began auto manufacturing and built the Changjiang Type 46 vehicle, which was the first production vehicle in China.

This renewal project will integrate the development of an industrial park, living community, business block, and cultural tourism scenic spot with the construction of Changan Science and Technology Innovation Center, Changan International Cultural Commercial Street, and the renovation of old residential areas. Shortly, visitors could enjoy an in-depth experience of automobile culture, global consumption, and cultural tourism, which will highly improve the quality of urban living.

After completing this project, it will not only become another vane of fashion consumption in Chongqing but also have great significance for expanding effective investment and stabilizing the economy.

Urban renewal with factory

Tourists who have been to Chongqing are familiar with Test Bed 2, which is also a successful case of transforming a factory into an innovative industrial park. Its exterior retains the architectural style of the old factory period. Inside, mottled exterior walls, many steel staircases, art galleries, artist studios, designers, and creative restaurants delight and entertain young and old crowds. The strong visual impact of the shabby and modern sense, and the intersection and fusion of industrial wind and fashion, constitute the overall visual experience here.

Many urban renewal projects have transformed from large and small factories in Chongqing because the city was an essential industrial base in China in the past. There are many factory sites in the urban area.

Data show that in the first half of this year, the city's first ten-billion-level high-end commercial complex Central MixC and other major international consumption center projects have also been launched.