The time is coming when an eco-friendly city will be substituted for the industrial center of Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning Province.

The Changbaidao Waterfront area will help the city become not only a magnet for investment but also an eco-friendly living space.

Shenyang residents, especially those living in the Changbaidao Waterfront area of Heping District, are proud when it comes to urban renewal programs. They hope these programs will help the city become not only a magnet for investment but also an eco-friendly living space.

Abutting the Hunhe River, the mother river of Shenyang, the Changbaidao Waterfront area is located in the southern region of the city and has an area of 10,870 square meters.

The green project, designed by Shanghai Tongji Urban Planning & Design Institute, serves as part of the provincial government's efforts to achieve a balance between environmental protection and human preferences and needs. It is expected to be completed by 2011.

"The waterfront is expected to become a site for a wide range of recreational, residential and commercial uses," said Sun Ming, an official in charge of the Changbaidao project. "It's to be a utopian island where we are enjoying a pleasant living environment with upscale residential buildings, up-to-date services and eco-friendly tourist facilities."

The "utopian island" has three parts with different functional roles: the area encircled by Hunhe River and the inland river, which is mainly used for commerce and public facilities such as libraries, hospitals, super markets and recreational sites; the area northwest of the inland river, which assumes multiple functions as a residential complex, tourist attraction and commercial center; and the area northwest of the inland river, which serves as an exchange for textile, metals, and logistic service.

In the next few years, the district will be a magnet for investment in terms of commerce, business, tourism and real estate and an eco-friendly "utopian island" in people's mind.