New scheme underway to transform Changsha waterfront

TenderStream members PEI Architects have released details of the firm’s design for the Sanxiang Bank Development, a 106,138 sqm mixed-use commercial/office complex currently under construction on the waterfront of Changsha in the Hunan province of south-central China. The design challenge was to fit an ambitious programme of buildings on a narrow site in an exposed location, requiring a concept that was compelling to view from many different perspectives. 

Each tower has been given a unique character in contrast to the neighbouring buildings, which are almost exclusively rectangular boxes with flat rooftops. PEI created several structures based on similar but different curvilinear geometries, while a low podium weaves through the building bases to unify the development. Connections between the podiums and their bases are characterized by façades that open in multi-storied arches that lead the viewer’s eyes from the ground up into the sky. 

The design of the main tower – as the headquarters of the Sanxiang bank – is derived from a geometry intended to represent stability and solidity, as well as possessing dynamic qualities. A compact and efficient plan is combined with a rotated façade as the tower rises to its full height as the dominant building at the northern end of the site. The group of three towers on the south offer the views of the riverfront, while their convex facades and pointed top recall the image of sailboats in the wind. The façade of the elliptical office tower in the centre leans towards the river as a gesture of recognition to the city, with its rooftop visible from across the water and from the upper floors of the main office tower.

Completion on the development is expected in 2021. 

Lucy Nordberg
TenderStream Head of Research

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