Last week, we shared LCLAOFFICE‘s conceptual proposal for the Kiev Islands, a proposal which connected the urban with the natural through an activated network of activities. In their shortlisted entry for the Faroe Islands, the firm teamed with Lateral Office to relink the city of Klaksvik with both of its bays. Such a move allows the urban development, which has historically happened along the length of the bay, and the civic and public institutions, which have been concentrated in an urban corridor, to connect people with the water.
More after the break.
The city of Klaksvik has experienced remarkable growth, transforming from a city of five settlements of a mere 100 people to a modern town of 5000 inhabitants. The population growth, fueled by the success of the fishing industry, has resulted in a certain level of development along the shorelines, but the urban center still has much potential for such interventions.
For their proposal, the landscape is considered an event space and series of urban rooms activated selected areas. These rooms have been designed to have distinct programmatic and landscape characteristics, and their development could be phased over many years to respond to the city’s needs.
The first room is situated on the competition site and is designed as a cultural and civic hub for the city. Yet, the strength of the proposal lies in the notion of several rooms speckled across the urban fabric as they mark smaller hubs of activity which can be individually iconic, but collectively integrated into the city fabric.
The second room is a hardscaped market space that houses commercial and residential units, and future hotels. The third room near the school is conceived of as an urban forest, planted with junipers and beech to protect against wind. South of that, the fourth room consists of playing fields that are amplified and expanded; and the fifth room is comprised of an education campus anchored by the Klaksvík Technical College, culminating in a promontory to the south bay.
