Eriksen Skajaa Architects Wins EUROPAN 10 for Oslo, Norway

The ‘Shuffle’ proposal by young Norwegian Eriksen Skajaa Architects for the revitalization of Oslo’s Haugerud suburb has recently won the EUROPAN 10 contest for Oslo, Norway.

The project is exploring low rise/high density urban planning as a way to reinforce local identity and making use of passive-house concepts to shape the buildings.

Here’s a detailed description of the concept we received from Eriksen Skajaa Architects:

Weave, Shuffle, Flip, Intensify….Study area strategy

The main challenges in the study area are the homogenous zones that undermine cross connections and permeability. In the perspective of sustainability and ecology, large areas in the study area are under-utilised. We have developed three main strategies to facilitate a new development in the study area:

Weave

The forested paths on Haugerud are places of natural beauty and create a strong sense of place and identity. We propose to extend the network of forested paths through the study area to facilitate interconnections and permeability; both through the new development and through existing homogenous strips like the school area or the social housing.

Shuffle

We propose to shuffle the existing program in the study area to enhance the life in the area and intensify the utilization of space. Low quality space will be upgraded through this strategy. Examples could be the colonisation of garden allotments, sports programs found in the middle of housing areas and an activity center in the new development shared by the school. Penetrating these boundaries is an important step in the groundwork for a new identity.

Flip

Flip is a strategy for turning the buildings in the area towards the public space. The school buildings and the centre all turn their back on the public space. By creating public spaces we also want to give them a clear direction. In our proposal we remove most of the existing centre and make facades that open up towards the new public space.

Intensify

Some key points in the study area will be used for more specific program to create specila points of interest. The metro station is already one such point and will be given an upgrade and modern bike parking facilities. The high rise building will be converted into a health/ wellness centre. Public activity centres will be points of special interest to the young and old people that spend time in the area.

Reinventing urbanity. Ecology versus intensity.

Grid orientation, formal characteristics, facades and construction methods where determined by the German passive house standard. The shaping of the volumes brings light in between the streets and to the solar facades, but it also gives houses individual character. Through this process we have developed a clear urban typology consisting of a relatively small scale urban unit that is combined in a dense configuration.

The unit can accommodate both the existing and proposed programs such as health and recreation centers. There is flexibility within the modules to develop a wide range of housing solutions ranging from individual houses to blocks of flats.

The ground floors have all been made as flexible as possible so that they can shift between housing and retail functions.  Through a high degree of fragmentation we open up possibilities that the large scale existing structures can’t cater to. We foresee in the beginning that a few small scale shops could function in the area, but we also see that this can be the framework for a development where retail and recreation colonize the entire development. This is the concept we call shuffle.

Another possible outcome is that the area becomes more a housing area and that people continue to do their shopping in the neighboring areas. We create flexibility within the framework of a strong urban typology. Urban intensity in this context means not so much an extreme number of people on a small lot, it means living and working in close proximity to each other and shared public space.

Larger types of public space such as school yards, fields, football pitches and parking lots are abundant in the area, so we have deliberately tried to make the public spaces small enough to generate types of proximity that will be an addition to the whole area. As permeability is a strategy of the project we will add smaller volumes to create a town or Medina with buildings that can easily fit into the fabric with another program. We believe the feeling of the small scale village will strengthen the identity of Haugerud, as well as offering an attraction. 

Project Details:
Project Name : Shuffle – Europan 10 Competition
Location: Haugerud, Oslo, Norway
Use: Urban plan, housing, commercial spaces
Site Area: 12,000 ㎡
Bldg. Area: 4,150 ㎡
Gross Floor Area: 15,000 ㎡
Bldg. Coverage Ratio: 34 %
Gross Floor Ratio: 120%
Bldg. Scale: 1-5 Stories above Ground
Structure: Massive Wood Elements
Landscape Area: 12,000 ㎡
Parking Lot: Underground Parking
Exterior Finish: Wood
Design year: 2009, 1st prize in competition
Completion year : -
Architect: Eriksen Skajaa Architects

Images: Eriksen Skajaa Architects