A launch ceremony for Meili Culture Town kicks off at Meicun Street in Wuxi’s Xinwu district on Nov 3, 2017. [Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn]

A launch ceremony for the Meili Culture Town project was held at the site of the proposed development on Meicun Street in Wuxi’s Xinwu district on Nov 3.

The new center is designed to shine a light on Wuxi’s more than 3,000-year history as a center of Wu culture, the culture of the region around the Yangtze River Delta.

Meili, the area of today's Meicun village, was the capital of Wu, an ancient kingdom founded by the legendary king Taibo toward the end of the Shang Dynasty (c.16th century-11th century BC), as well as the birthplace of Wu culture.

The culture town project was the product of the local government’s collaboration with eco-city developers Golden Concord Group Limited and culture town construction specialists RK Properties Holdings Ltd.

Covering an area of four square kilometers, the town wil be divided into three parts: The Meili ancient town cultural area, Jiangnan rural ecological area and traditional experience areas along the Bodu River.

A signing ceremony for a strategic cooperation agreement on the town’s construction and a conference meeting to decide the logo design for the town were also held after the launch ceremony.

William Zen, chairman of RK Properties Holdings Ltd, shared his ideas of the town’s construction at the ceremony, stating that the company is confident that Meili Culture town will provide a panoramic view of Wu culture.

At the end of the ceremony, Wuxi Mayor Wang Quan and other officials rang a set of bells, an ancient Chinese musical instrument, to signal the start of construction on the Meili Culture Town project, and the beginning of a bright future for the area.