2/6/18 – L.A. Biz: Gafcon Master Plan Selected For Shanghai’s Zizhu Purple Bay Project
Shanghai Waterfront Community Builds on Success of Plan for Seaport San Diego
Gafcon Inc. has been selected to lead a visionary master planning and development process for the Zizhu Purple Bay residential community, a megaproject on a 800-acre waterfront site along the Huangpu River located 18 miles south of the Bund of Shanghai.
The community will enhance a growing urban center with yacht homes, condos, a nature and education center with an approximately 125,000-square-foot aquarium and botanical garden, a rowing club, and a community services district with a health clinic, senior housing, youth center and multiple schools. Construction is underway on portions of the Purple Bay site with the Gafcon-led Phase 2 master plan beginning in March of 2018 on the 800-acre InnoTown business, technology and university hub, with an active marina and a walkable downtown center.
When complete, Purple Bay will be a world-class waterfront community that incorporates a variety of residential and commercial developments with a focus on high-tech industry and educational institutions. The list of committed tenants includes University of Southern California, General Electric and Coca-Cola.
“This is a legacy project at a tremendous scale,” said Yehudi ‘Gaf’ Gaffen, CEO of Gafcon. “We are essentially building a new city from the ground up. It already has attention from high-profile companies, universities and individuals.”
The Purple Bay project builds on the vision of the 70-acre Seaport San Diego, a reimagining of a popular, urban, waterfront development. The Seaport San Diego project is being led by Gaffen’s development company, Protea Waterfront Development, and includes members of the Purple Bay team, including AVRP Skyport, the project’s architect.
Acting as the Program Manager of Purple Bay, Gafcon led a team including AVRP Skyport, McCullough Landscape Architecture, Moffat & Nichol (marine engineering), and OdySea (aquarium operation) in developing the master design.
“Zizhu Purple Bay will be one of AVRP Skyport’s signature urban, waterfront properties,” Frank Wolden, Principal at AVRP Skyport, said. “New community assets will connect with the region’s greatest resource—the waterfront—into one incredible experience. The cohesive design will create a livable, desirable and thriving community.”
