Beijing, capital of China, and its exuberant waterfront is supposed to be a significant component of the city’s charm. However, due to urbanization and population growth, Beijing’s waterfront is experiencing a variety of issues, needing comprehensive urban design and overall value assessment. The main purposes of this study are to develop an urban layer system of waterfront urban design and to assess the current and expected value of Beijing’s waterfront. Beijing’s waterfront was divided into four urban layer subsystems: ecological subsystem, spatial subsystem, demand subsystem, and cultural subsystem. This study includes the waterfront of 26 rivers and 9 lakes, which are divided into 54 waterfront segments by main roads. This study assessed the current and expected values of 54 waterfront segments in Beijing with the urban layer system by citizen questionnaires, expert questionnaires, and field surveys. A series of maps and radar maps were generated to visualize the assessment results. This study analyzes and describes the characteristics of four urban layer subsystems and different waterfront segments, based on a comprehensive evaluation of the value of Beijing’s waterfront. It provides strategies for the master urban design of Beijing’s waterfront. Furthermore, the results of this study and the urban layer system can provide insight on waterfront urban design.

To address current ecological issues and a lack of historical preservation in Beijing’s waterfront, it has become necessary to establish an urban design project that optimizes these aspects. This study focuses on “Beijing’s Waterfront Overall Urban Design,” a project that integrates government requirements with Beijing’s waterfront urban design characteristics and problems to establish an urban layer system from two dimensions: historical and ecological. It explores how the urban layer system can be applied to Beijing’s overall waterfront urban design, from investigation to evaluation, analysis, visualization, and strategy development. First, an urban layer system for Beijing’s waterfront was established from a historical perspective, based on urban setting and construction stages and space utilization, referring to the literature and field surveys. The evolution of urban layers of waterbodies, the water–city relationship, and water functions was systematically analyzed. Second, an urban layer system was established for the ecological dimension of Beijing’s waterfront based on a literature review, expert interviews, and analytic hierarchy process methods. It included four urban layers: waterbody, greening, shoreline, and ecological function. The quality of the ecological urban design of 54 waterfront reaches in Beijing was evaluated using questionnaires and field surveys. Third, a series of urban layer maps was generated using the mapping method. Finally, urban design strategies were developed based on the combined historical and ecological characteristics and problems of Beijing’s waterfront. The results of this study and the concept of an urban layer system for waterfront urban design can benefit waterfront urban design projects and future studies.

The spatial equalization of medical facilities can alleviate the wastage of medical resources and improve the efficiency of medical services. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out spatially balanced planning and assessment of medical facilities in cities. Existing studies on the balanced planning, design, and evaluation of medical facilities have been conducted from the perspective of hospital buildings in terms of spatial utilization efficiency, service satisfaction, and their physical environment on one hand, and from the perspective of regional planning of medical facilities in terms of spatial accessibility to medical facilities and the suitability of medical facilities to the social environment on the other hand. This study hopes to break down the boundaries of each perspective and effectively integrate the architecture, planning, and social well-being of medical facilities, taking spatial equilibrium as the core, in order to establish a spatial equilibrium system for medical facilities and achieve a spatial equilibrium-based assessment of the current state of medical facilities. First, the factors influencing the spatial equilibrium of hospital buildings with the support of the system and environment of hospital buildings are determined. Second, the indicators of the spatial equilibrium of hospital buildings are extracted through the consideration of influencing factors, and the indicator weights are determined by discussing the degree to which they contribute to the influence of the operation of hospital building spatial equilibrium systems, thus forming a system of equilibrium indicators for hospital buildings. Finally, a spatial equilibrium evaluation model for hospital buildings is established to assess the effects of equilibrium. The results obtained in this study provide insights into the regional planning of medical facilities and the design of hospital buildings.