The World Expo site will transform into a place for cultural exchanges, high-level exhibitions and public spaces for citizens after the event ends on October 31, Shanghai's Vice Mayor Yang Xiong said on October 8.

The site will showcase the city's culture and not just merely be a place for business use, Yang told local citizens during a broadcast interview.

The Expo Center, Culture Center and the Houtan Park along the Huangpu River will open to citizens as activity centers.

However, he said most foreign and corporate pavilions will be dismantled after the Expo because they would not have much use and maintaining them would be costly.

The city government will build an Expo 2010 Memorial Museum to house some of the pavilions' innovative designs and exhibitions, Yang said.