TheYoungor WonderLake is located east of the core area of Ningbo’s Eastern New City, occupying a strategic position within the city’s “dual-core” plan. The handover of the project commenced at the end of November. As the final residential piece within the Central Corridor of the Eastern New City, the project responds to the spatial strategy of “embracing the lake” through a comprehensive development model, aiming to create a high-quality waterfront living environment. This project is not merely an exploration of spatial form, but also a deep practical application by GOA of the concept of a “vibrant community”.

The project directly addresses two major challenges: shaping a waterfront architectural interface with distinct identity, and creating a mixed-use, open neighborhood that embodies the characteristics of the waterfront. To this end, the architecture employs pure horizontal lines combined with soft curves in localized areas, outlining a light and expansive posture standing by the lake. The residential units are maximized along the lakefront, with balconies oriented toward the landscape. The expansive horizontal lines allow the building complex to naturally integrate into the lakeshore scenery, becoming an organic extension of it.

The “vibrancy” of the community stems from the openness and permeability of the interface. The commercial The vitality of the community springs from an open, porous edge. The commercial podium is broken down into human-scaled volumes that step back generously along the lake, releasing a continuous band of urban lawn and plaza. Staggered setbacks animate the street wall and host a mix of cafés, restaurants, and retail, creating a ground-floor fabric that invites people to linger and interact. Aerial promenades threaded through the second level act as public belvederes, preserving sweeping sightlines to the water while extending street-level sociability upward—turning the community edge into a three-dimensional, fully composite civic front.

The completion of the architectural facade relies on precise structural execution. The most challenging elements were the large-scale curved metal overhangs at the tops of the residential towers—symbolizing “sails”—and the irregular curved aluminum panel curtain wall system. To achieve the ethereal quality of the lakeside facade, the design utilized 3D software for precise modeling and repeatedly refined the structural details through on-site 1:1 physical mock-ups, ensuring a high degree of fidelity from the design intent to the final built reality.

Returning to the functional attributes of living, fundamental considerations such as a sense of purity, a sense of home, and the relationship with nature are what constitute a moving community.