Architecture firm Goettsch Partners has unveiled its design for a new resort and meeting destination on China’s Hainan Island in Haitang Bay.
Developed by Poly Real Estate Group, the complex, called Rosewood Sanya and International Finance Forum, features a 729-key resort hotel and serviced apartment tower, a 28,000-sm International Finance Forum convention center, a series of connecting retail buildings, and a modest visitors center.
Located at the southern end of the island in the city of Sanya, the complex focuses on two primary design elements: a lighthouse tower for the hotel and serviced apartments, and a rock form for the convention center.
To be operated by Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, the 45-story, 123,500-sm hotel and serviced apartment tower is distinctive as a resort property, standing as a clear landmark on the waterfront. The International Finance Forum is designed as a premier convention facility, catering to national and international economic and political summits, as well as a variety of other meetings and special events.
Rising from a conceptual outcropping of rock, the 233-meter-tall “lighthouse” hotel and serviced apartment tower will be an iconic symbol of Haitang Bay, with its glowing beacon visible as visitors approach from any direction.
Designed to be a unique resort in the sky, the building is organized vertically, with the arrival sequence, landscape, and incorporation of water and views all considered integral to the guest experience.
The resort is purposely designed to be intimate and exclusive, offering a limited number of rooms—all generously sized—as well as an extensive array of amenities. Hotel guests arrive at a lushly landscaped entry and are immediately whisked up elevators to the sky lobby on level 14 for check-in. This expansive two-story level features unparalleled views and landscaped terraces, along with several amenities, including a sweeping infinity-edge sky pool, lobby lounge, three-meal restaurant, and an executive club.
From the sky lobby, local elevators then escort guests to their rooms on the lower levels. All 229 guest rooms face east and feature ocean views. Each guestroom also includes its own individual terrace or, in some cases, its own plunge pool.
The 500 serviced apartments are positioned on the upper floors of the tower, as well as behind the hotel areas on the lower floors. The top of the tower provides a club amenity level for all apartment units. This multilevel space contains small gathering and larger meeting spaces, along with areas for drinks and entertainment.
The overall complex is scheduled for completion in 2015, with the hotel opening in 2017.
Related Stories
| Jan 20, 2011
Worship center design offers warm and welcoming atmosphere
The Worship Place Studio of local firm Ziegler Cooper Architects designed a new 46,000-sf church complex for the Pare de Sufrir parish in Houston.
| Jan 20, 2011
Construction begins on second St. Louis community center
O’Fallon Park Recreation Complex in St. Louis, designed by local architecture/engineering firm KAI Design & Build, will feature an indoor aquatic park with interactive water play features, a lazy river, water slides, laps lanes, and an outdoor spray and multiuse pool.
| Jan 20, 2011
Community college to prepare next-gen Homeland Security personnel
The College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, Ill., began work on the Homeland Security Education Center, which will prepare future emergency personnel to tackle terrorist attacks and disasters. The $25 million, 61,100-sf building’s centerpiece will be an immersive interior street lab for urban response simulations.
| Jan 19, 2011
Industrial history museum gets new home in steel plant
The National Museum of Industrial History recently renovated the exterior of a 1913 steel plant in Bethlehem, Pa., to house its new 40,000-sf exhibition space. The museum chose VOA Associates, which is headquartered in Chicago, to complete the design for the exhibit’s interior. The exhibit, which has views of five historic blast furnaces, will feature artifacts from the Smithsonian Institution to illustrate early industrial America.
| Jan 19, 2011
Baltimore mixed-use development combines working, living, and shopping
The Shoppes at McHenry Row, a $117 million mixed-use complex developed by 28 Walker Associates for downtown Baltimore, will include 65,000 sf of office space, 250 apartments, and two parking garages. The 48,000 sf of main street retail space currently is 65% occupied, with space for small shops and a restaurant remaining.
| Jan 19, 2011
Biomedical research center in Texas to foster scientific collaboration
The new Health and Biomedical Sciences Center at the University of Houston will facilitate interaction between scientists in a 167,000-sf, six-story research facility. The center will bring together researchers from many of the school’s departments to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects. The facility also will feature an ambulatory surgery center for the College of Optometry, the first of its kind for an optometry school. Boston-based firms Shepley Bulfinch and Bailey Architects designed the project.
| Jan 19, 2011
San Diego casino renovations upgrade gaming and entertainment
The Sycuan Casino in San Diego will get an update with a $27 million, 245,000-sf renovation. Hnedak Bobo Group, Memphis, Tenn., and Cleo Design, Las Vegas, drew design inspiration from the historic culture of the Sycuan tribe and the desert landscape, creating a more open space with better circulation. Renovation highlights include a new “waterless” water entry feature and new sports bar and grill, plus updates to gaming, poker, off-track-betting, retail, and bingo areas. The local office of San Francisco-based Swinerton Builders will provide construction services.
| Jan 19, 2011
Extended stay hotel aims to provide comfort of home
Housing development company Campus Apartments broke ground on a new extended stay hotel that will serve the medical and academic facilities in Philadelphia’s University City, including the University of Pennsylvania and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The 11,000-sf hotel will operate under Hilton’s Homewood Suites brand, with 136 suites with full kitchens and dining and work areas. A part of the city’s EnergyWorks loan program, the project aims for LEED with a green roof, low-flow fixtures, and onsite stormwater management. Local firms Alesker & Dundon Architects and GC L.F. Driscoll Co. complete the Building Team.
| Jan 19, 2011
New Fort Hood hospital will replace aging medical center
The Army Corps of Engineers selected London-based Balfour Beatty and St. Louis-based McCarthy to provide design-build services for the Fort Hood Replacement Hospital in Texas, a $503 million, 944,000-sf complex partially funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The firm plans to use BIM for the project, which will include outpatient clinics, an ambulance garage, a central utility plant, and three parking structures. Texas firms HKS Architects and Wingler & Sharp will participate as design partners. The project seeks LEED Gold.
| Jan 19, 2011
Museum design integrates Greek history and architecture
Construction is under way in Chicago on the National Hellenic Museum, the nation’s first museum devoted to Greek history and culture. RTKL designed the 40,000-sf limestone and glass building to include such historic references as the covered walkway of classical architecture and the natural wood accents of Byzantine monasteries. The museum will include a research library and oral history center, plus a 3,600-sf rooftop terrace featuring three gardens. The project seeks LEED Silver.