HRA is designing the buildings for a large, theme park in Chengdu, China. The size of this project requires imagining the site at a city scale. In 1998 Howard was the chief designer for the Chinese Theme Park located in Welland, Ontario; a city within a stone’s throw away from numerous attractions around Niagara Falls. The master plan for this Canadian project informs many of the design decisions we are now making for this new proposal in China. The park in Welland, designed by Howard, while employed at Patrick Chan Architect, is organized around a strong central axis.

At the park’s entry, a ¼-scale version of The Forbidden City, commands the parking areas in front, becoming a Tiananmen Square-like space.  From their initial arrival at the site, guests are immersed within the themed experience.  While the park is organized around the five dynasties of the Chinese history, its six hotels, located throughout the park’s perimeter, are also themed slightly to respond to adjacent themed areas, thus keeping the mood consistant within that zone.  Learning from our experience in Welland, our design for this project is evolving into one of our most exciting projects to date.