Chapter 11
Technical Parameters on Urban Planning

1. Construction Land Classification and Building Types

The classification of construction land should follow the principle of compatibility and the detailed planning.

In the absence of such detailed planning, the classification should be carried out as per the zoning planning of the central city area, the comprehensive planning of new towns and central towns, and the Table of Buildings Types Allowed on Different Kinds of Construction Land (Table 11.1).

Residential Land (R) is used for constructing large or scattered settlements, including residential quarters, blocks, meeting places, and staff dormitories. Public facilities Land (C) is used by organizations engaged in administration, economy, culture, education, health care, sports, and research. Industrial land (M) is used by industrial and mining companies for building factories, warehouses, and other related facilities. M₁ has little influence or pollution on the surrounding living environment and facilities;M₂ has some influence or pollution; and M₃ has severe influence on or pollution. Warehouse land (W) is occupied by warehouses, stockyards, packing and processing plants, and other related facilities. Municipal Utilities Land (U) is allocated for municipal utilities. Green Space Land (G) is used for planting public green space (G₁) and green space for production, isolation, sanitation, and safety (G₂).

Notes:

1. √ stands for “allowed”; χ for “not allowed”; and—for “to be determined by the planning administration as per the planning and particular situation.”

2. C₁ C₂ refer to commerce, trade and office.

3. C₃-C₆ refer to education, science and technology, culture and health.

2. Building Density and Plot Ratio

Notes:

1. This table applies only to those single-purpose construction sites measuring no more than 30,000 square meters and lacking detailed planning.

2. The indexes listed in this table are the upper limits.

Notes:

1. For buildings with a gable wall thickness of over 16 meters, the distance from the boundary line shall be controlled as per that of the primary orientation.

2. For low-rise detached houses with primary orientation, the distance from the boundary line shall be multiplied by 0.7.

Notes:

1. RW: road width.

2. SD: setback distance.

3. BH: building height. H: height.

3. Building Height and Landscape Control

Construction of residential buildings equipped with elevators between nine to 12 stories in the central city area should be encouraged. New high and low residential buildings are expected to adopt sloped roofs.

Power lines around new residence buildings should be buried underground; fencing walls should be hollow cutting and covered with green plants. The outdoor unit of air-conditioners and associated appliances should be installed at designated places for the sake of uniformity. Outdoor or remote collection of information, such as readings of water, electricity and gas supply, should be promoted.

The height control for building and rebuilding should conform to related regulations on headroom control around airports, meteorological observatories, radio stations, and other telecommunication facilities, including microwave communication facilities where headroom control is important.

The height control around construction-controlled areas, such as historical and cultural sites, should conform to related regulations and approved detailed planning. In the absence of approved detailed planning, a city design or site design should first be worked out before effective height control measures can be formulated after evaluation and assessment.

The height control for building and rebuilding along urban highways should meet the following requirements, unless otherwise stipulated by the approved detailed planning:

• Generally, the building height (H) should not exceed the equivalent of 1.5 times the sum of the restricted road width (W) and the setback distance (S), that is, H . 1.5(W + S).
• The height of high-rise complex buildings should be governed by the formula A . L (W + S), in which A refers to the projection area of a building on the ground at a 1:1.5(56.3°) altitude angle, L the length of the construction site along the planned road restriction line, W the width of the restricted road, and S the setback distance.

The building width should meet the following requirements unless otherwise specified by the approved detailed planning:

• For buildings no more than 24 meters high, the width of the projection of the largest successive expanding facet should not exceed 80 meters.
• For buildings with a height ranging between 24 and 60 meters, the width of the projection of the largest successive expanding facet should not exceed 70 meters.
• For buildings with a height exceeding 60 meters, the width of the projection of the largest successive expanding facet should not exceed 60 meters.
• For a group of continued yet uneven buildings, the highest height will apply in calculating the upper limit of the width of the projection of the largest successive expanding facet.

The recommended height of each story in mid-rise and high-rise residential buildings is 2.8 meters, with an upper limit of 3.6 meters.

The boundary walls around street-side residential buildings should be hollowed-out with a height below 2.2 meters. Greenbelts with a specified width should be planted within the setback distance.

4. Green Space and Parking Lots

The percentage of green space in the gross area of a building site (hereinafter referred to as GP) must meet the requirements specified in the Regulation on Tree Planting and Forestation of Shanghai.

The green space for the calculation of GP includes concentrated green belts in building sites and scattered green patches, such as the green space around houses, by pathways in residential settlements, and between buildings.

Large green areas should account for no less than 10% of the total area of residential land. In residential quarters, the area of every centralized green patch should be no less than 400 square meters, one-third of which should be outside the building intervals. The highway-side public green space and green isolation belts should not be deemed as part of the centralized green space of residential quarters if they are not inside the quarter boundary. However, in the central city area 50% of the public green space can be regarded as an area of the building sites if the public green space along some sections of the highways is in the charge of building contractors, but the added area should not exceed 20% of the ratified building area (the original building site area multiplied by ratified plot ratio).

The centralized green space in the same block can be uniformly planned, designed, and built. Such centralized green space is recommended to be planted along urban highways. If the building sites inside the Puxi Inner Ring Road fail to meet the goal of planting green space despite great efforts, the green space on the building roofs may be converted into ground green space. However, each green patch on the building roof should be no less than 100 square meters.

Parking facilities in new building sites should conform to the traffic planning and related regulations on the construction of parking lots. In new building sites located in the central city area, parking space per household should be no less than 0.6 cars. For new building sites inside the Puxi Inner Ring Road, the ratio should be increased depending on the supporting facilities in the surrounding areas. The parking rate in suburban areas should be 20% higher than that in central urban area.

5. Special Zones

Shanghai Municipal Government may set up special zones in light of the actual needs for social and economic development as well as environmental protection. The construction projects in these special zones should be carried out in accordance with the approved detailed planning. Shanghai's urban planning administrative departments will formulate special rules and regulations on how to demarcate and manage these zones.