Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Master Plan (1986–2000)

Historical, political or economic context in which the plan/project is proposed

In 1980, the Chinese government decided to build a new city—Shenzhen—next to Hong Kong to spearhead the nation’s agenda of ‘reform and opening-up’. The site then was largely a rural area. The planners were able to imagine, plan, and design a city almost on a blank paper. Several preliminary plans preceded this plan which was completed in 1986. The 1986 plan was the new city’s first major master plan, and laid the spatial structure that was the foundation of the city’s growth into an international metropolis today. Shenzhen exemplified the roles of political wills and planning in city making, as part of a nation-building agenda.

Bibliography

Hu, R. The Shenzhen Phenomenon: From Fishing Village to Global Knowledge City. London and New York: Routledge, 2020.

Hu R., “The State of Smart Cities in China: The Case of Shenzhen”, Energies 12 no. 22 (2019): 4375:1–18.