Today, the Mayor of Tainan, William Lai, together with the Urban Development Bureau of Tainan City Government, the Urbanists Collaborative and LLJ Architects officially marked the start of construction for Tainan Axis. This moment signals the next step for the project seeking to transform the site of the former China-Town Mall into a green corridor with public interventions along Haian Road.

Hanian Road is a lively and social gathering spot in the city due to its numerous offerings of outdoor seating, and several blocks of bars and restaurants. The transformation of China-Town plaza and its perpendicular axis on Haian Road, which together form the T-axis, aims to re-establish the waterfront connection that has been lost and provide an important stimulus to the redevelopment of the neighbourhood by encouraging residents and visitors to use public spaces. A new public square with a lush, green lagoon, dunes and playgrounds will be flanked by commercial units such as retail kiosks, a tourist info point, tea house and art gallery.

MVRDV won the competition in 2015 together with an interdisciplinary team of experts including local firm The Urbanist Collaborative, LLJ Architects, Progressive Environmental Inc., Urban Sculptor Planning & Designing Consultants, THI Consultants Inc and MEP engineers Songsing.

Tainan Axis will be completed in April 2018 and to visit the project page click here