Jiading New City development proceeding at pace

Editor's note:

Jiading New City, one of Shanghai’s “five new cities,” is focused on innovation and prosperity. This issue highlights the planning and achievements of the key areas, showcasing its vibrant future.

Central Activity Zone

“The Jiading New City Central Activity Zone is positioned as an ecological belt with various urban functions rather than simply being a water region surrounded by architectures,” said Liu Chi, deputy chief architect of Jiading New City Development Co. “It will be a place of the future with profuse natural elements.”

The central activity zone, a key region of Jiading New City, covers about 4.56 square kilometers, with Gaotai Road in the north, Shuangdan Road in the south, Yongsheng Road in the west and Hengli River in the east. At the early stage of the planning, the district, adhering to the concept of “integrating the urban space into nature,” has decided to interweave architectures with natural environments such as Yuanxiang Lake and the Ziqi Donglai scenic belt, in order to create a unique urban image that highlights the charm of Jiading.

Among all, the “culture loop” is the most brilliant pearl necklace of Yuanxiang Lake that strings together 10 architectural miniatures. Currently, seven of the 10 architectural projects, including the Jiangnan Bookstore and the Johnson Fitness and Cultural Center, are open to the public.

After years of development, the zone has already grown into a central area that integrates various functions such as scientific and technological innovation and research, office and retail, residential living, and public services.

The ongoing Sasseur (Shanghai Jiading) Outlet, a 160,000-square-meter project by Yuanxiang Lake, will feature over 600 brands and become a new commercial landmark in Jiading New City.

Jiading Science and Innovation Core

The Jiading District Science and Innovation Core, whose plan was released during the 7th Scientific Technology Fair for the Yangtze River Delta last November, serves as a pioneering area for scientific and technological achievements and a source for future-oriented industries.

Located in the Juyuan New Area of Jiading New City, the Science and Innovation Core covers an area of 2.4 square kilometers and its collaborative development area includes the entire Juyuan New Area and surrounding areas.

The core area is home to five national scientific research institutes, 230 high-tech enterprises and 6,000 scientific research professionals at present, boasting a supreme scientific and technological innovation ecosystem.

Focusing on the three major billion-yuan-level leading industries in the district — automotive, intelligent sensors and the Internet of Things (integrated circuits), and medical equipment and precision medicine — the Science and Innovation Core aims to gather more than 30 scientific and technological platforms at municipal level or above by 2030, with the proportion of science and technology enterprises exceeding 70 percent.

Currently, the future materials technology industrial park and Jiatang Zhidi future life medicical science industrial park have been operational. More than 30 companies have settled in, with an expected annual tax revenue of nearly 15 million yuan (US$2.05 million).

The future digital and intelligent industrial park, mainly focusing on the low-altitude economy, will accelerate construction and complete by August while the IoT (Internet of Things) research and development center will start construction very soon and be completed by 2027.

Madong Demonstration Zone

The Innovation Island in Jiading’s Shanghai Automotive Chip Valley is located in the Madong Industrial-City Integration Development Demonstration Zone and spans 2,505 mu (167 hectares) as planned.

Last year, a 100,000-square-meter intelligent manufacturing industrial park was completed, and the first batch of companies moved in this year.

According to Hu Zhengyan, director of the Malu Town Urban Construction Management Affairs Center, future development of the Innovation Island will include a business headquarters park, a cluster of institutes and testing facilities, a standardized manufacturing area, and a built-to-suit manufacturing zone, with the aim of creating an industrial cluster comprising innovative medical device enterprises, research centers of leading industry players, and research institutes.

The thriving scene on the Innovation Island is just a snapshot of the dynamic growth in the Madong Industrial-City Integration Development Demonstration Zone, where industry and city are merging at unprecedented speed.

Madong’s development not only focuses on its own industrial upgrades and functional improvements but also plays a crucial role in forming a new core for Jiading New City alongside the Yuangxiang Lake cultural loop.

To expedite future growth of the Madong demonstration zone, efforts are also being made to improve the traffic flow on certain roads and highways including the S5 Shanghai-Jiading expressway to upgrade the regional transportation network.

Xidajie Street

Xidajie Street, in the heart of the West Gate historical area, is one of Jiading District’s historical and cultural landmarks that dates back around 1,500 years.

The West Gate historical area, considered the birthplace of Jiading, is home to 14 district-level cultural heritage sites and many historical figures, including Gu Weijun (also known as Wellington Koo), the first modern Chinese diplomat, and Wu Yunchu, the famous national entrepreneur known as the King of MSG.

With a planned area of 167,000 square meters and total investment of 15.5 billion yuan (US$2.1 billion), the four-phase Xidajie Street renovation project will be built into a vibrant block with various functions covering culture and entertainment, innovative business, commercial service, tourism and sightseeing, and accommodation.

The first phase of the renovation project, which spans 172 meters from Xichenghe North Street in the east to Xiangjing in the west, kicked off last October.

“Construction on the first phase is scheduled to complete by the end of this year, which includes Huguo Temple, the Culture Park and the Xidajie commercial complex,” said Cui Hongce, who oversees the construction of the project.

As planned, the second phase, which involves a culture-themed hotel, will commence this year. The third and fourth phases will begin constructions in 2026 and 2027 respectively and the whole project is set to conclude by the end of 2028.

Jiabao Smart Bay

Jiabao Smart Bay in the northern part of Jiading spans the Jiading Industrial Zone, Juyuan New Area and Xuhang Town.

It has a total planned area of 6 square kilometers. An east-west Linrun Road acts as an artery, connecting three major industrial parks focusing on chip design, intelligent networking and the digital economy.

“Jiabao Smart Bay serves as not only an incubator for tech innovation enterprises but also a testing ground for urban-industrial integration,” said Wei Zuanping, acting deputy general manager of the Shanghai Jiabao Smart Bay Construction and Development Co.

The area boasts rich natural ecological resources, including green spaces, rivers and waterways, and wetland and farmland.

Two major roads in the bay recently began full-scale construction, providing efficient traffic arteries for enterprises in industrial parks. Additionally, initial work for waterway treatment and landscape enhancement projects also commenced.

Jiading boasts one of the best automotive industry ecosystems in China, with abundant talent and application scenarios. Jiabao Smart Bay, therefore, aims to build itself into an industrial functional area integrating “headquarters, research and development, and applications.”

It has already attracted several companies in the chip design sector, such as the Sim Chip and Kolmostar, as well as those in system integration sector whose businesses span battery management, autonomous driving, smart cockpits and automotive wire control.

United Imaging Town

The tower building in the United Imaging Town at the intersection of Baoqian and Jiatang highways has recently reached its structural topping-out, marking a major milestone in the development of the United Imaging medical industrialization demonstration base.

Covering some 9.5 square kilometers, it will grow into an international high-end medical equipment industrial cluster and a demonstration zone for industry-city integration.

As planned, United Imaging, the major player, will entice several upstream and downstream biopharmaceutical companies to locate in the town.

“United Imaging Town is the global headquarters of United Imaging Group and a model area for integrating high-performance medical equipment industry development with high-quality urban living,” said Li Minghe, chief of Jiading Industrial Zone Planning and Environment Office.

This year marks a pivotal moment for the development of the United Imaging Town.

“The second phase of its industrial project will be completed by year-end, and land acquisition for the third phase will begin,” said Li.

“From the infrastructure perspective, the northern extension of Shanghai suburban railway Jiading-Minhang Line is set to kick off construction by the end of this year, and Zhuqiao talent community will see its first land parcel sale.”