Formerly the grand auditorium of the staff residential compound of the Beijing Prospecting Machinery Factory, the “Big Eaves” had stood idle for many years. Following renewal and transformation by Shokai Group, it has been reborn as a vibrant “neighborhood living room” where residents can shop for groceries, seek medical care, read, and care for children—all within their community. The retro red-brick walls paired with a metallic gray façade, complemented by the warm-toned, expansive eaves, create a sturdy yet visually pleasing architectural presence. Encircling the complex is a 500-meter fitness trail, clearly marked in blue, yellow, and red. A single loop brings residents to all the essentials of daily life: a fresh food market stocked with meat, eggs, and vegetables; and the community’s new cultural highlight—Shokai Academy, which has opened within the neighborhood under the name Yile Reading Room, distinguishing it from Shokai Academies in Dongcheng, Chaoyang, and Haidian. This is the first Shokai Academy to enter a residential community. It is open to the public free of charge, and residents can exchange donated unused books for vouchers accepted throughout the complex.

The “Big Eaves” has been thoughtfully designed to address everyday needs, enabling residents to resolve most daily necessities within a five-minute walk from home. On the second floor, an AI-powered study room is awaiting equipment installation. Spanning over 200 square meters, it can accommodate 30 children for supervised self-study. The Children’s Growth Center, also located on the second floor, is currently enrolling. On the third floor, the boxing gym is fully heated and equipped with soundproofing, allowing residents to exercise without leaving the neighborhood. Particularly anticipated is the community canteen, which has been planned with single-portion meals, family-style dishes, and shared-table areas, encouraging neighbors to dine together and socialize. These facilities are designed to work in synergy: meals for children at the childcare center are customized by the canteen using ingredients sourced from the fresh food market; after visiting the traditional Chinese medicine clinic, residents can be directed to the adjacent tea and beverage area for tailored wellness teas—forming an internal micro-circulation ecosystem.

Covering more than 2,000 square meters, this neighborhood hub is Shokai Group’s first community-level neighborhood center and a model example of revitalizing underutilized assets. It has been designated a key livelihood project of the BMC and was recognized in 2025 as an Outstanding Beijing Urban Renewal Project. The well-known “Shokai Experience” has already produced classic urban revitalization models in several old residential communities across districts such as Shijingshan and Xicheng. The “Big Eaves” represents its first implementation in the BMC. In terms of hard infrastructure, the project adhered to the principle of not exceeding the original property certificate area, preserving elements of the original building structure while upgrading it through prefabricated design and renovation. In terms of soft services, social capital was introduced into the renewal of the aging community, enabling a mixed-use layout that conveniently meets residents’ needs for education, culture, healthcare, and leisure—offering a valuable reference for the renovation of older neighborhoods in the BMC. Shokai Group has also delivered several highly popular projects in the BMC, including the instantly iconic Tongzhou MixC, the Songzhuang Shokai Long Street currently under construction, and this pioneering neighborhood hub. These are tangible livelihood projects, where residents’ sense of well-being is truly concentrated within this five-minute living circle.