The new the Hangzhou Alipay Headquarters is located between the Xi Xi wetlands and downtown Hangzhou, a city renowned for its rich culture and beautiful landscapes. Hills and small mountains surround the headquarters building in three directions, and in the fourth lies downtown Hangzhou. Three landscape “movements” derived from openings in the building direct people to the central open space area, where they converge. Using traditional Chinese garden principles, plants on the site are arranged according to landforms, with locally sourced stone pavers giving way to soft planting areas with an emphasis on central gateways. Both active and passive water features enliven the site, creating opportunities for interaction or tranquil enjoyment of the mountain views. Whether viewed from outside the building or experienced within it, the landscape integrates the richness of its natural surroundings into its open spaces.
Work by SWA/Balsley Principal Gerdo Aquino on behalf of SWA
Suzhou Center
The Suzhou Center is a landmark urban space within the Suzhou Central Business District that embodies the spirit of the city of Suzhou as a gateway for intersecting old and new cultural and historic heritage. The successful combination of high density development and ecological conservation will allow for Suzhou to transition to a garden city where the state-o...
Giant Interactive Headquarters
We collaborated with Morphosis Architects on a new ecological park and living laboratory for Giant Interactive Headquarters, a 45-acre corporate campus in Shanghai, China. The design concept blurs the distinction between the ground plane and the structure, weaving water and wetland habitats together with the folded green roof of the main building design. The s...
Brentwood Town Centre
The Brentwood Town Centre Development Plan will transform the existing suburban-style shopping mall into a mixed-use, transit-oriented community, reasserting itself as the nucleus of the Brentwood Town Centre area. The site will accommodate some 2,000-4,000 high, medium, and low-rise residential units. Its role as a shopping destination will be expanded into a...
Ballpark Village 200
SWA/Balsley has been contracted for full district-wide landscape services for this exciting new urban redevelopment, located directly across the street from Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.
This downtown revitalization effort includes creating an iconic, unified district identity, strengthening pedestrian connection to the d...