Huaihai Cultural Park

Huaihai Cultural Park

Huaihai Cultural Park is a national AAA-level tourist attraction.

The predecessor of Huaihai Cultural Park was Xuzhou Cultural Industry Park, once part of the Huaihai Food City. It is located at the intersection of four key urban areas in our city: the new urban district, the old urban district, the high-speed railway business district, and the high-tech development zone. Key roads such as Kunlun Avenue, Century Avenue, Yingbin Road, Yujing Road, Xinxin Road, Sanhuan East Road, and the Old Course of the Yellow River converge here, placing it in the central area of Xuzhou’s future urban development.

To describe its location more vividly, one need only mention the “Pengzu Tower.” In 2000, the newly completed Pengzu Tower stood majestically right behind the Huaihai Food City, becoming a landmark structure. Its grandeur by day and dazzling lights by night attracted tens of thousands of local residents and visitors from nearby areas.

With continuous industrial upgrading and business model adjustments, in 2007, Pengzu Tower — once the core building of the dining village in the Huaihai Food City — took on a new mission by integrating into Xuzhou Cultural Industry Park, becoming an important symbol and central landmark of the park and witnessing its development. In 2008, Xuzhou Cultural Industry Park was designated as a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Industry Demonstration Base. In 2011, the park was given a new positioning: the Huaihai Economic Zone Arts and Cultural Artworks Exhibition and Trading Center. In 2012, it was officially named “Huaihai Cultural Park,” and in 2013, the park became a Jiangsu Provincial Modern Service Industry Cluster Zone and one of the first key cultural industry parks in the province.

This October, Pengzu Tower will reappear before the public in a brand-new look. Its façade has been fully renovated to a refreshed state, with the surrounding square now shaded by green trees and encircled by clear water. The main tower will be transformed into a Jade Culture Museum, while the two side towers will serve respectively as a tourism reception center and an art gallery.

Among them, the art gallery has been fully renovated and will host an exhibition of works by renowned calligraphers and painters from Pengcheng. The Jade Culture Museum has completed its design phase, and upon completion, it will exclusively display 32 large jadeite statues of Guanyin and the world’s largest Hetian jade carving — the “Great Thousand Buddha Kingdom Pilgrimage Painting,” which measures 3.2 meters in size and weighs 8.7 tons.

The entire cultural park currently features 23 major individual buildings, spatially divided into five functional zones. Though they may appear separate and scattered or clustered in a seemingly disjointed layout, they are all interconnected by roads, closely linked, and form an integrated whole.

At the center of the park lies the Cultural Creative Products Exchange and Trade Zone, covering a total area of 32,500 square meters, focusing on the trade and exhibition of artworks, arts and crafts, and creative products. It has already attracted cultural art projects such as Oriental Gold Jade, -Art Gallery, International Crossover Art Museum, Handicrafts Mall, Beijing Wenhuatang, and Jian’ou Wood and Root Carving.

To the east of the Cultural Creative Products Exchange and Trade Zone is the Creative Design and Master Studios Cluster Zone, spanning 23,300 square meters, primarily focused on the trade and exhibition of artworks, while also housing calligraphers’ studios, cultural creative design offices, and handicraft production displays. Current tenants include Mingyang Technology Company, Boruisitong Animation, handicraft retail outlets, and Suzhou Crafts.

South of the Creative Design and Master Studios Cluster Zone is the Cultural Science, Technology, Education, and Training Zone, covering 25,000 square meters, focusing on cultural and arts training as well as cultural performances. This area currently hosts institutions such as art schools, Huaxia School, Xuzhou Song and Dance Troupe, and the Cultural Industry Group.

Opposite the Cultural Science, Technology, Education, and Training Zone is the Cultural Leisure and Entertainment Supporting Zone, spanning 25,000 square meters, focusing on dining, accommodation, leisure, entertainment, and business services. It has already introduced lodging and catering businesses such as Mingshi Hotel, Lingdian Fast Food, and the time-honored Lianglaifeng. Several modern and fashionable cafes and performance bars are also in talks to move in.

Centered around Pengzu Tower is the Cultural and Arts Expo Zone, covering 20,000 square meters. Integrated with Xuzhou’s comprehensive redevelopment of the Old Course of the Yellow River — the Old Course of the Yellow River Tourism and Sightseeing Belt project — it has created a tourist attraction with distinctive cultural and artistic features. The main tower of Pengzu Tower serves as the Jade Buddha Culture Museum and the Pengzu Health Culture Exhibition Hall, while the two side towers function as a tourism reception center and an art gallery, respectively.