Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2024, with Jinji Lake serving as its “heart” and a core driver of the park’s development. Since 1998, AECOM has played a crucial role in shaping Jinji Lake and its surrounding areas for over two decades, transforming the 550-hectare lakeside zone into a landmark destination for Suzhou and beyond. Today, our services continue to evolve, fostering high-quality development across the expanded Jinji Lake area.
During the 1990s — when landscape design concepts were yet to gain widespread acceptance in China — AECOM pioneered a landscape-led approach, integrating environmental science, planning, and multidisciplinary expertise to deliver the Jinji Lake Master Plan and Landscape Design. This not only created a globally acclaimed waterfront urban space and elevated Suzhou’s identity as a “water-city coexistence” metropolis but also catalyzed transformative shifts in China’s urban planning and landscape philosophy.
As one of AECOM’s signature projects in China, the Jinji Lake set a precedent for waterfront planning and design nationwide. It redefined public perception, positioning, and usage patterns of waterfront public spaces in Suzhou and across China, sparking a wave of subsequent water-centric urban developments. The project significantly enhanced land value, established new paradigms for waterfront development, demonstrated the core value of ecological landscapes as green infrastructure, and revitalized traditional culture through innovative elements — fully showcasing AECOM’s vision and confidence in urban development.
At this new 30-year milestone, with SIP positioned as Suzhou’s new urban center, the Jinji Lake area is entering a renewed phase of revitalization. Leveraging profound insights into evolving trends, environmental shifts, and user needs, AECOM provides tailored planning and design solutions to create a more livable and workable lakeside environment. Our goal is to infuse the park with enduring vitality and innovative spirit, ensuring its sustained prosperity.
Redefining Governance: Catalyzing Waterfront Evolution
Amidst urban population growth and demographic shifts, public expectations for open-space functionality and experiences are evolving. After systematically analyzing stakeholder needs — including management bodies, service providers, and end-users — AECOM established Jinji Lake’s overarching vision: “To model a new governance framework for urban public spaces, driving SIP’s evolution for the next 30 years.”
This innovative governance model is built on four pillars:
- Prioritizing long-term value enhancement
- Unlocking incremental gains through precision design and operations
- Transitioning from capital-driven to efficiency-driven expansion
- Creating an internationally significant “China Model” through local expertise
Guided by this framework, Jinji Lake will evolve from a commercial tourism hub into Suzhou’s vibrant new center — offering premium living standards and robust development potential.
Future-Focused Implementation Pathways
Building upon the governance innovation and our commitment to ESG principles, we established the apex goal for Jinji Lake’s public space upgrade: Creating a people-oriented 24/7 “always-on economy”.
Our design strategy emphasizes user-oriented, low-carbon pedestrian spaces and reimagines the integrated green loop. Additionally, we aim to enhance three core centers along the waterfront while fostering a sense of belonging through welcoming spaces, supplemented by strategically developed multiple nodes to further enrich connectivity and community engagement.
These strategies inform 11 actionable initiatives:
Multi-Functional Green Ring Reconstruction
- Pedestrian & Bike System Improvement
- Aquatic Vitality Hub Upgrade
- Service Sation System Optimization
- Last-Mile Connectivity Improvement
- Landscape Element Revitalization
- Blue-Green Corridor Integration
Three Center Enhancement
- City Plaza
- Right Bank
- Li Gong Di
Multi-Node Supplement
- Park of Wind
- South Bay Park
As people stroll, jog, cycle, or seek tranquil communion with nature along this dynamic waterfront, the city’s vitality shines through. Jinji Lake’s continuous enhancement fosters human-nature harmony while advancing sustainable economic and environmental progress.
AECOM, in collaboration with Suzhou Industrial Park, is committed to crafting a future for Jinji Lake — pulsating with energy, ecological resilience, and enduring promise. We are confident that its future, like its eternal flow, holds limitless possibilities.
Learn more: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/06SofMZPbXTV_77Ae95-XQ