The renovation of Haian Road, which was completed last year, has brought new life to one of Tainan’s most lively streets. Traffic on the street has been reduced, with cars now occupying just a single lane in each direction. Meanwhile a unifying concrete tile surface has replaced a patchwork of different paving treatments that had built up over the years, and the planting strategy continues the abundant, natural approach employed elsewhere. The project also addresses one of the street’s most negative features, the many large ventilation shafts that intrude onto the public space from below ground. While these infrastructural elements could not be removed, they have been painted a uniform colour in an attempt to minimise their visual presence. The city of Tainan then selected a number of local artists to decorate these structures.
Tainan Spring is the first of two MVRDV projects that will be completed in Tainan this year, with the Tainan Wholesale Market currently in the final stages of construction to the east of the city. Tainan Spring was completed by MVRDV alongside an interdisciplinary team of experts including local architects LLJ Architects, sustainability/landscape and urban designers The Urbanists Collaborative, structural engineers consultant Evergreat Associates, SE., transportation planners THI Consultants Inc., lighting designers LHLD Lighting Design, MEP engineers Frontier Tech Institute, and General Contractor Yong-ji Construction Co. Ltd.