In the approximately 10-hectare housing estate “Kirkebjerg” in Ballerup, Denmark, there have been repeated problems with flooding and damp cellars in the past. At the same time, the local waste disposal companies had an interest in relieving the local sewer system in order to reduce sewer overflows in the wider sewer network. This resulted in a project for local rainwater management and heavy rainfall prevention […]

In the approximately 10-hectare housing estate “Kirkebjerg” in Ballerup, Denmark, there have been repeated problems with flooding and damp cellars in the past. At the same time, the local waste disposal companies had an interest in relieving the local sewer system in order to reduce sewer overflows in the wider sewer network. This resulted in a project for local rainwater management and heavy rainfall prevention in the extensive lawns of the housing estate.

Where the local height and space conditions allowed, the downpipes were decoupled from the sewer system and the rainwater was directed into the open spaces for evaporation and infiltration. A large part of the project was financed via a repayment scheme for connection fees. For every square meter of sealed surface that discharges less into the sewage system, the landowner, the housing association “Brøndby Boligselskab”, received a grant from the waste disposal company “HOFOR” and was thus able to realize the project.

Together with a residents’ working group, gruppe F Landschaftsarchitekten from Berlin developed a design concept for the areas over the course of several workshops. Inspiration for this came from the image of water droplets on a smooth surface. The excess soil from the excavation of infiltration troughs was modeled into circular mounds of various sizes. In this way, no soil had to be removed and a simple green lawn landscape with small pools and mounds was created, which changes its appearance depending on the water level. Small “puddles of water” in a green lawn landscape turn into large blue “lakes” with round green islands during heavy rainfall.

Scattered throughout this landscape are small “oases” for the residents with simple play elements, planting and recreational areas.

The project was developed by gruppe F Landschaftsarchitekten together with the Danish office Gaihede a/s and has been gradually implemented on site by the Danish office since 2018.

You can find the article on the Kurt-Schumacher Quartier in Berlin in G+L 04/2019.

Work on the central station in the Dutch city of Arnhem has now been going on for 20 years. As a result, skaters have appropriated the space.

Work on the central station in the Dutch city of Arnhem has now been going on for 20 years. Despite ongoing construction work, the area has been appropriated by a user group that the planner considers unpredictable and often finds no space: skaters. A success for the responsible landscape architects from Bureau B+B. But where did it come from?

Images: ©Hufton+Crow

The design of Arnhem station is the result of more than two decades of collaboration between the architects UNStudio and the landscape architects from Bureau B+B. It presented the planners with various challenges. Topographically alone: the station is located on the slope of the Veluwe massif and the planners had to overcome a height difference of 20 meters. They achieved this by creating a subtle, constantly changing landscape. The folded, undulating natural stone surfaces largely trace the terrain below, linking visitor flows and ensuring a smooth transition between the different elevation levels.

Pictures: Frank Hanswijk

If you are not continuing your journey immediately, you can also make yourself comfortable on the wooden benches that emerge from the edges of the sloping natural stone surfaces in the quiet corners of the station grounds. You don’t have to buy anything, as there is no obligation to buy anything to sit down in the rooms outside the station. This is one of the reasons why the Arnhem station forecourt is so lively. And it is in turn an explanation for the fact that these local people tend to belong to those population groups that are otherwise often pushed out of public spaces – such as older people, young people, skaters or homeless people.

The Arnhem train station shows this: The less the purpose of a public space is defined, the more opportunities users have to implement their own ideas. This is of particular benefit to population groups that are often deliberately excluded when planning public spaces. The square design also benefited from the fact that it took around two decades to implement. This allowed the user groups, who tend to be marginalized, to appropriate the space in the long term.

Curious? You can find the full article on Arnhem station in the February 2019 issue of G+L.

Translated from the English by Sigrid Ehrmann