While with RNL, Ron Schafer brought into the firm an opportunity to provide master planning services for a prime real estate site in the north of China, in the city of Harbin, Heilongjiang province. The site is located south of Harbin’s signature Songhua River, and is planned to include a 5-star hotel, prime mid to high rise office space; live work; a internally focused, covered street complex supporting commercial shopping plus food and beverage. All of these uses will be integrated with low to mid rise residential.

Ron lead the creative team to create a unique place and destination. We introduced a river system running from southern most point of the site to the northern most point, tying a planned water park on the south to the Songhua river on the north. This system offers opportunities for planned recreational open spaces along the pedestrian oriented river path and for a mix of commercial and residential uses. At the center or heart of the north-south system we have formed a central park incorporating cultural plus civic uses surrounded by high end office and residential products. We have placed a business hotel on north-west corner and it will act as a project landmark as a benefit of its unique iconic architecture expression.