Throughout the early- to mid-20th century, Shanghai’s elite American community socialized in a rural complex outside of the city. The scene revolved around the Columbia Country Club built in 1924 by American architect Elliott Hazzard. Featuring a clubhouse, a large gym and dazzling outdoor pool, the structure was the epicenter for expat interaction during Shanghai’s grand epoch. In 1930, Hungarian architect László Hudec added a stunning villa to the site. Over time, three prewar monuments in the Spanish Colonial Revival style as well as 40 other structures also popped up in the compound.
Elliott Hazzard’s 1924 Columbia Country Club as it exists today
Image via Historic Shanghai
In 1952, the Shanghai Institute of Biological Products took over the site, closed it to the public and developed a research campus along with production facilities, offices, warehouses and laboratories. Since the institute ceased operations there, this historic site at the center of the city has laid inaccessible for half a century, gradually becoming enveloped by tall modern buildings and urban development.
Now, Columbia Circle is set to become a major public attraction once again thanks to a new master plan by Rotterdam-based architecture firm OMA. With Chinese real estate developer Vanke, the architects will preserve the empty 4.7-hectare compound and its many architecturally significant structures while introducing three new buildings slated to create a mix of commercial and cultural activities, hotels, restaurants and creative businesses.
As the model below highlights, the additions to the complex will complement and contrast the heights and materials used in the construction of the surrounding buildings. It will fuse the historic spaces with modern architecture expected to enhance the appeal of Columbia Circle while respecting its legendary past life.
Two new access points to Columbia Circle will improve pedestrian accessibility from the surrounding streetscape and connect the outdoor spaces designed by landscape architects West 8. The master plan takes up almost an entire city block that backs up against Shanghai’s main east-west artery, Yan’an West Road.
Columbia Circle is OMA’s second project in Shanghai after the recently completed Shanghai Lujiazui Harbour City Exhibition Centre. The project continues the firm’s dedication to the preservation of previously built architecture.
According to the firm’s website, the new buildings will “extend the repertoire of spaces and offer programmatic possibilities not available in the existing buildings.” The project will also renovate or reimagine the façades of the older industrial structures as well as add or subtract space from the buildings when necessary.
“The combination of colonial monuments, industrial buildings and new modern buildings results in a rich collection of spatial typologies,” said OMA.
After over 90 years of existence, Columbia Circle, with its multilayered history and current character, will be regenerated as a mixed-use site set to invigorate and bring economic as well as social growth to the center of Shanghai once again.
All images via OMA