Gothenburg
Masthuggskajen is a central area, strategically located by the river Göta Älv and bordering the moat and the Old Town of Göteborg. Historically, it was a part of the city’s important port and large parts of the area are made up of different landfills for port activities. The site is still dominated by the ferry for ferries to Denmark. Today, the only urban activities are a civic centre and some port-related office buildings; the rest of the site is mostly used a car park. The presence of the E45 motorway, which runs under the Old Town of Göteborg in a tunnel that has its western entrance/exit within the site, poses an additional challenge in terms of integrating heavy infrastructure in the new urban fabric, while ensuring a healthy, quiet and environmentally sustainable environment for residents, workers and visitors.
The project aims to create a dense, central neighbourhood that can encourage urban and civic activities and the use of public spaces at night as well during the day, with a mixed programme of housing, offices, retail, public services, as well as leisure and relaxation. Care has been taken to create safe, traffic-free zones to ensure freedom of movement and access to the water for children. Special attention has been paid to studying and strengthening links with the surrounding neighbourhoods, to the mutual benefit of the existing and the new urban fabric. By creating a new neighbourhood in Masthuggskajen, other areas, which are now cut off from the rivel Göta Älv, are given direct connections to the water. In terms of public space design, the emphasis is (put) on identifying, strengthening and developing existing green structures, rather than creating new ones. By planning and designing a neighbourhood that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable, the project aims to achieve the highest rating in the BREEAM Communities assessment system.
Masthuggskajen is a central area, strategically located by the river Göta Älv and bordering the moat and the Old Town of Göteborg. Historically, it was a part of the city’s important port and large parts of the area are made up of different landfills for port activities. The site is still dominated by the ferry for ferries to Denmark. Today, the only urban activities are a civic centre and some port-related office buildings; the rest of the site is mostly used a car park. The presence of the E45 motorway, which runs under the Old Town of Göteborg in a tunnel that has its western entrance/exit within the site, poses an additional challenge in terms of integrating heavy infrastructure in the new urban fabric, while ensuring a healthy, quiet and environmentally sustainable environment for residents, workers and visitors.
The project aims to create a dense, central neighbourhood that can encourage urban and civic activities and the use of public spaces at night as well during the day, with a mixed programme of housing, offices, retail, public services, as well as leisure and relaxation. Care has been taken to create safe, traffic-free zones to ensure freedom of movement and access to the water for children. Special attention has been paid to studying and strengthening links with the surrounding neighbourhoods, to the mutual benefit of the existing and the new urban fabric. By creating a new neighbourhood in Masthuggskajen, other areas, which are now cut off from the rivel Göta Älv, are given direct connections to the water. In terms of public space design, the emphasis is (put) on identifying, strengthening and developing existing green structures, rather than creating new ones. By planning and designing a neighbourhood that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable, the project aims to achieve the highest rating in the BREEAM Communities assessment system.