A massive urban renewal campaign was launched on Friday to turn the city's Wusong area in Baoshan District, known as the cradle of China's modern industry, into an "innovation city."
The district signed agreements for major projects worth over 16 billion yuan (US$2.25) in the second quarter of 2023, signaling significant progress in the area's transformation and development.
The projects include the city's strategic industries like biomedicine, advanced materials, robotics, intelligent manufacturing and new-generation information technology.
In a notable project, major renovation was launched on the Peninsula 1919 Fashion Technology Industrial Park with an investment of about 1.5 billion yuan.
It marks the beginning of the rapid redevelopment of the 26-square-kilometer Wusong Smart City.
The Wusong area was home to the renowned Baosteel and more than 300 other metal refineries and chemical engineering plants dating back to the 1930s. Most of the factories have shut down or been relocated due to pollution controls.
Now the 26-square-kilometer site will be transformed into a subcenter with new materials and hardware industries, scientific and cultural innovation parks, commercial and business facilities, residential communities and waterfront attractions.
The Peninsula 1919 park on the north bank of the Wusong River was home to the former Shanghai No. 8 Cotton Mill, once a prominent textile factory and one of the biggest in Shanghai with thousands of workers.
The mill experienced decline with the waning of the traditional textile industry in the 1990s. Now, the factory area will be preserved and converted it into a cultural and creative park.
It will focus on fashion industry venture capital services, research and development of new textile materials, smart supply chain technology and innovative technologies for fashion consumption.
In another project, the Wusong Gas Plant, established in 1938, will be preserved and revitalized to attract new energy enterprises to establish research and development centers, laboratories and research institutes.
The gas plant has played a vital role in gas production, transmission and supply across the city. It has ceased operations and undergoing a transformation to give way to the urban development.
