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Every change in a city vividly reflects the pursuit of a happier life.
With the design concept of “mountains blending into the painting”, the Luwan Bridge, whose preliminary design was officially approved in early June this year, is about to enter the construction phase. Spanning the Daxi River and connecting the Liancheng and Baiyan districts, this bridge will become a landmark in Lishui’s “Three Rivers Estuary” area, helping to shape the city’s new image of “One Vein, Three Cities”.
For 25 years, Lishui has remained committed to building itself into a central city in southwestern Zhejiang. The urban development has evolved from a single-core model to a cross-river dual-city structure and further to a new pattern of “One Vein, Three Cities”, centered around the Ou River and driven by the “Three Rivers Estuary”. This vision includes a vibrant northern city, an innovation-driven southern city, and the Bihu New Town, with the framework now taking shape.
Expanding the Map: Ushering in the Era of “One Vein, Three Cities”
Lishui’s urban development history is one of breaking geographical constraints and reshaping spatial patterns. In 2000, the city’s main urban area was confined to the north bank of the Oujiang River, with a built-up area of just 9.2 square kilometers.
Limited development space and a monotonous functional layout made it difficult to fulfill the mission of a regional central city.
The breakthrough came in 2004 when the municipal government proposed the “Southward Urban Expansion, Eastward Industrial Spread” strategy, aiming to create a “One River, Two Cities” structure. This plan envisioned the Ou River as the axis, with dual urban centers on its north and south banks, enhancing livability and industrial diversity.
In 2006, the Zijin Bridge, spanning 736.7 meters and connecting both sides of the Oujiang River, opened to traffic. This bridge became the "lifeblood" of Lishui’s urban development, fully integrating the northern and southern cities. The southern city attracted batches of high-tech enterprises, painting a new blueprint for urban growth.
In 2013, the Lishui Urban Master Plan (2013–2030) formalized the spatial layout of “One River, Two Cities, Three Functional Zones”. The northern city focused on administrative, commercial, and cultural functions as a livable area, while the southern city became an industrial, logistics, and innovation hub. The three functional zones included northern residential, southern industrial, and central leisure areas, clarifying the urban framework.
Under this strategy, the southern city overcame spatial bottlenecks by developing low-slope hills and restructuring its industrial system around eco-friendly manufacturing, further energizing the regional economy. By 2024, the Lishui Economic and Technological Development Zone—the only provincial-level “Ten-Thousand-Acre, Billion-Yuan” new industrial platform in Lishui—had attracted 43 projects with a total investment exceeding 70 billion yuan, becoming a model for revitalizing old revolutionary base areas.
As the urban spatial layout continued to optimize, the northern city, southern city, and Bihu New Town further integrated. The built-up area expanded from 9.2 to 50.6 square kilometers, and the urban population grew from 200,000 to nearly 460,000, injecting strong momentum into the city’s development.
“Lishui’s urban roads have increased from 64 to 381 kilometers, forming a primary road network of one ring, five east-west routes, and seven north-south routes. Residents now have easy access to buses, reaching destinations within half an hour,” said Pan Xuezhen, a member of the Municipal Construction Bureau’s Party Leadership Group and Chief Engineer, who has participated in Lishui’s urban planning for nearly 20 years.
Additionally, bridges like the Xikou, Zijin, and Shuidong, spanning the Ou and Haoxi rivers, have connected various urban districts, continuously expanding the city’s development space.
Solving New Challenges: Cross-Mountain Coordination for a Better Life
High mountains and scattered resources once hindered Lishui’s urbanization efforts.
The solution? In 2022, the Fifth Municipal Party Congress proposed “Cross-Mountain Coordination”—breaking geographical barriers and restructuring development to elevate the city’s regional centrality, allowing more remote residents to access high-quality public services in core areas.
To address spatial constraints in mountainous areas, Lishui implemented policies like “15 yuan government subsidies for every 11 kilometers of highway, with individuals paying only 5 yuan”. Since 2021, differentiated tolls for ETC passenger vehicles on the Yun-Jing Expressway have made travel between Yunhe and Jingning as routine as driving on city roads, shortening both travel time and social distances.
Lishui is now writing a new chapter in urban development, with the “Three Rivers Estuary” synergistic development zone linking the northern city, southern city, and Bihu New Town.
As the core area of the 800-li Ou River, the “Three Rivers Estuary”—where the Ou River, Xiao’anxi, and Xuanping rivers converge—is the key hub connecting the “Three Cities”. In November 2023, Lishui hosted a promotional event here, presenting the “Mountain-Water Living Room · Beautiful Intelligent Shore” blueprint to over 50 entrepreneurs in health, tourism, and green industries.
Today, the “Three Rivers Estuary” is bustling with construction. Key projects like Huajie Road and the Baiqiao Neighborhood Center are underway, while the “Two Roads, One Bridge” initiative advances rapidly. Industries such as biopharmaceuticals and digital economy are accelerating their presence. From a single core to “One River, Two Cities” and now “One Vein, Three Cities”, Lishui has completed a stunning urban transformation in 25 years.
“Lishui is a far-sighted city with strong spatial planning for development,” said Shen Junsheng, Vice President of China Yintai Investment. “Its improving regional transportation, abundant natural resources, and excellent ecological environment attract numerous eco-industries and tourism investments.”
Small County, Big City. Originating in Yunhe County, the “Small County, Big City” strategy has, over two decades, built 48 resettlement communities, enabling 60% of farmers to relocate from mountainous areas. Today, 80% of the county’s population lives in the county seat, and 93.4% of students receive education there, pioneering a unique path for mountainous urbanization.
“Strong City, Thriving Villages, Integration”, Lishui promotes urban-rural integration through the “Thousand-Village Demonstration, Ten-Thousand-Village Improvement” project, narrowing development gaps. In Qingtian County’s industrial powerhouse, Wenxi Town, a “Big Town Leading Small Townships” alliance was formed with Guicang, Xiaozhoushan, and Wukang townships. Twenty-seven villages jointly established a “Strong Village Company”, investing in rooftop solar power and charging stations, reducing income disparities from 4.35x to 2.36x.
Adding Vitality: Youth and the City’s “Two-Way Attraction”
“Let’s sign up! Join Lishui’s 2025 ‘Dual Entry, Dual Stay · Youth Gathering in Zheli’ summer internship program.” This summer, Lishui’s recruitment campaign sparked enthusiasm among Hangzhou university students.
“We must build a stage for talent growth together with the city,” said a Lishui Youth League official. With a “youth-first” approach, Lishui invites students to bring their classrooms into industrial parks, letting youthful brilliance shine in urban development.
A thriving youth population means a thriving city. As Zhejiang’s youngest prefecture-level city, Lishui proposed building a youth-friendly city in 2022, rolling out policies to attract, nurture, and retain talent. Initiatives include ten practical measures for talent services, an upgraded “Lishui Talent Code”, move-in-ready youth apartments, and one-stop support for young entrepreneurs.
In 2023, Lishui pioneered the “Stay in Zhe-Li, Start Freely” co-prosperity stations, offering full support for youth entrepreneurship. By late 2024, the “Eight Measures for Digital Nomads” had established six “Digital Nomad Bases”, attracting over 400 remote workers to set up “offices” amid Lishui’s landscapes.
In 2025, Lishui launched a youth employment and entrepreneurship plan, including 10 supportive policies and an 80-million-yuan “Lichuang Loan” guarantee program.
Youth and Lishui are in a “two-way attraction”, with dreams taking root in this old revolutionary area. Chen Ken, a returnee Ph.D. from Shenzhen, moved his drone R&D team to Lishui, inspired by its business environment and youth-friendly policies. By 2024, his company, Rongqi Technology, secured four “10-million-yuan” orders and partnered with 20 clients at the Zhuhai Low-Altitude Expo.
This vibrant “City of Youth” and “City of Entrepreneurship” is winning over more young people, accelerating high-quality development. In 2024, 44,500 youths became “urban partners” of Lishui, which rose to 40th in China’s “Post-95s Talent Attractiveness” ranking.