![A sparkling past and a bright future basking in the glow of The Central [SHINE]](https://i0.wp.com/usachinatrading.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/A-sparkling-past-and-a-bright-future-basking-in-the-glow-of-The-Central-SHINE.jpeg?resize=525%2C295&ssl=1)
In the summer of 2021, the glass dome above The Central was finally lit. Its sparkling 4,000-square-meters were decorated with 12,000 LED bulbs, linking four historic buildings under its dreamlike structure. In the fourth episode of Qiao Shanghai, Michelle Qiao guides her audience in exploring this 1930s arcade and its recent makeover.
The Central was developed by Jewish tycoon Edward Ezra and designed by Palmer & Turner in a classical style. After World War II, vendors began congregating here to sell leftover American military goods like pens, lighters, second-hand watches, and clothes. From 1949, the arcade became an attractive market for defective products and items once though flawed became useful to locals.