Project Background
Wuhan CBD locates in Wangjiadun area of Hankou district, which had been an airport for the air force since the foundation of People’s Republic of China. As the city developed, the area then became the geographic center of Hankou district. With sufficient land, superior location, complete infrastructure construction and less pressure for the removal and the reconstruction, the area has turned out to be a precious land for high-level and massive exploitation in the city center.
In order to make full use of its potential and remove the limit to the development of Wuhan city brought by the policy of clean air for airports, the State Council together with the Central Military Commission jointly approved the removal of the air force airport in Wangjiadun and give back the 4,000mu (266 hectares) lands to Wuhan city for its own use. Aiming at further development and better functions of the city, it was clearly stated that the Wangjuadun Airport would be replaced by a planned expo and financial center in central China in accordance with the State Council’s official reply on February 9th 1999 to the document—“Overall Urban Planning of Wuhan City (1996-2020)”.
With the emergence of strategy of “the Rise of Central China” and the construction of Wuhan City Cluster, Wuhan municipal party committee and government proposed to construct its own CBD in order to better serve its economy and satisfy the increasingly close international economic cooperation and exchange. In the government work report on the 1st Plenary Session of the 11th People’s Congress of Wuhan city in January 2003, Mr Li Xiansheng, the former mayor officially proposed to build Wuhan CBD in the place of the original airport from the perspective of the future of Wuhan city. Hence, the construction of Wuhan CBD has officially begun.