THE CITY´S PUBLIC SPACES

The city’s streets, squares, parks and in-between spaces work best when they are a common resource, accessible, attractive and inclusive for us all. They provide an important public function that is worth strengthening and developing. Today we see all too often the encroachment of these spaces in the hunt for valuable property to develop by private interests, and as a result, valuable places for physical activity, recreation and socializing are pushed out. Public squares are occupied by commercial functions and become a kind of mono-cultural cityscape, tailored for one kind of activity and one kind of citizen.

We believe that the mixing of diverse functions can in fact strengthen one another, rather than compete – a synergistic reaction in which 1+1=3. In the quest for resource effective solutions, economic constraints and collaboration, the creation of URBAN PLACES a strategy that gives more value to more people. This is true in the large scale (strategic planning and early phase development), as well as in specific projects in which a park bench or sport field can be the deciding factor for success. In our vision, the city is a pulsating field filled with these possibilities.

THE ENABLING POTENTIAL OF THE CITY’S INFRASTRUCTURE

The flows of heat, electricity, water and waste are the metabolism of the city. We are specialists in architecture that enables cities to work through the designing of these essential systems and the buildings and structures necessary to support them. Within URBAN SYSTEMS we link technical knowledge with analytical rigor and architectural values – in the interface between technology, humans and urban space.

Infrastructure must adapt to change, unpredictability and a growing population. Often, they cannot be concealed, but rather become significant parts of our urban environment. We see these factors as potentials, if used consciously and strategically. In this way they can create added value to our common spaces, contributing to dynamic meetings between varied functions and needs in the cityscape.

BUILDINGS WHERE WE LIVE, WORK, MEET AND EXCHANGE IDEAS

Many of the city’s most vital buildings are social spaces that enable participation. We call these places URBAN HUBS. Characteristic for them is that they link different functions in our daily life – everything from work to education, recreation, private and public activities can be a part of the mix. To define a building as an URBAN HUB gives us new perspectives on the role the building has to play, both within and in its exchange with the city environment it is a part of. Understanding the context and the participants is essential for a hub to work. It can be designed and filled with functions for a specific group in mind, or broader in its ambitions and scope. Each hub is a unique mix of uses and possibilities for exchange – a one-off recipe and an architectural expression that comes from it.