Collaboration in the city of the future

Developing the urban spaces of the future calls for creative approaches and collaboration with new players. Partners in Aarhus 2017 rethink their approach to urban development and create visions and new frameworks for liveability in the city. 

The optimum conditions for liveability are created in interactions between people and their surroundings, Claus Hommelhoff, Senior Asset Advisor and Founder of Formuepleje A/S explains: “Liveability as a theme in Aarhus 2017 is important because the whole world could benefit from living in interaction with nature, the seasons, life, opportunities and each other”. Formuepleje A/S is the largest privately owned wealth management company in Denmark and works with investments and counseling. The company is founded in Aarhus, and the city is a suitable place for cultivating and developing the idea of liveability, Claus Hommelhoff continues: “Here, you find the spirit and energy necessary for moving forward, the enthusiasm to dare and the right setting for development. Aarhus holds the positive energy and attitude it takes to engage in taking new directions and improve the quality of life“. According to Claus Hommelhoff, the idea of liveability entails viewing well-being as a whole: “It is possible to make the building’s physical appearance be in harmony with the outdoor environment, local history and natural surroundings. It’s about finding the balance, where people fit in between all the elements we control and what we cannot control. It prompts the exciting challenge for developers and project managers in construction, to create a sense of freedom, while keeping the familiar safeness in the immediate environment. Both elements need to be present for the benefit of the residents”. The challenge in incorporating the many different elements is addressed in a certain way in Aarhus – ‘the city of smiles’: “It is sensible to initiate projects with the famous local smile and ask: What do the specific natural contexts provide us, that makes us feel both free and safe, while making sure that we don’t spoil our living spaces? We do not live in balance until we feel at home”, Claus Hommelhoff adds.

Inspiration and collaboration
To the building and project developing company bricks A/S, liveability is essential in the company’s current projects. The company’s massive developing project Nicolinehus at Aarhus Ø and high-rise buildings at Frederiks Plads in the city centre, has the combination of business and residency as a key element in creating activity in the area, while connecting neighbourhoods. “A company like ours has an obligation to support cultural life. It goes hand in hand. The better collaboration between municipality, architects, developers and creative milieus, the greater value for the people living in and looking at the constructions. Our great collaboration is more apparent than ever before and Aarhus is on its way to a fantastic future in a united path”, Martin Busk, co-owner and Director of bricks A/S explains. He believes that staying in touch with creative and upcoming milieus is essential in succeeding as a building developing company: “There are a lot of exciting groups of young, creative people in Aarhus. They are important to include, because they create dynamic activity”. The various players prompt new perspectives for the company to consider, when imagining the urban spaces of the future. “It is always useful to listen”, Martin Busk adds, ”Aarhus as the European Capital of Culture in 2017 elevates us. In bricks, we want to make an effort in urging people to be loyal and take pride in their city. The year as Capital of Culture plays an active part in moving away from divisions between the north and the western parts of the city. We are heading towards Aarhus merging as one.”

When CASA A/S works with creating liveability, it is key that the development of urban spaces, housing, business and green spaces, creates value both in the perspective of the developer, the residents and the city. The development company is engaged in several projects that reflect the current tendency, where people increasingly want to live right at the centre of urban and cultural life. CASA converts business functions into housing in the well-known Scandinavian complex in the centre of Aarhus. New student housing will have balconies and a common courtyard and offers the students the possibility of living in a modern type of dormitory, where residents live close to one another, but in their own separate homes. Underway is also the development project Valdemar’s Garden, where a former public administrations building is transformed into apartments set in a new, green city garden. In regards to city planning, the site functions as a link between a rising neighbourhood of old railroad areas to a higher located part of Aarhus, with the City Hall, Musikhuset and ARoS Art museum. Valdemar’s Garden will have terraces and will connect neighbourhoods, while creating a secluded green oasis making room for privacy, contemplation and social community for residents. Managing Director in CASA, Michael Mortensen, explains: “With CASAs many projects in the pipeline and under construction in Aarhus, we consistently enter into dialogue with a wide variety of stakeholders, decision makers and collaborators. We view it as our first job to offer creative solutions, that contribute in uniting interests and develop new, exciting neighbourhoods together”.


Facts:

// A central theme of Aarhus 2017 is Liveability, understood as the framework surrounding people’s lives, work and thinking.

// Throughout the year as Capital of Culture, we will focus on how to promote liveability in developing the cities of the future.

// At the conference, Rising Architecture Week, you will get insight into innovative approaches to city development and liveability. The conference offers exiting challenges and presentations from among others the world-renowned Danish architect Jan Gehl and city architect of Aarhus, Stephen Willacy as well as a range of international speakers. The conference will take place in Aarhus from 11.-15. September. Read more about the event here.