Would changing the way Slussen is set up now be like taking away the Eiffel tower in Paris, or the statue of Liberty of New York? Slussen may not be a massive tower in Stockholm, but it does however have one thing in common with these beautiful monuments, it attracts many people everyday and is a wonderful necessity for the way the City of Stockholm has been for a long time. Sofie Björck feels that reconstructing Slussen will make it a lot less attractive and remove some of the characteristics of this place. There have been many protests about how the new Slussen is planned to look like, a new “group” on Facebook has been founded, and has circa 2000 members in it, with not only Citizens of Stockholm, but international men and women have raised concern.
Many believe that when changing the way Slussen is now, will make for a place that won’t be a human envirornment and will stop being a nice destination for people from Stockholm and other places to sit and look out over the city. However, since Slussen was finalized in 1935 it is in need of renovation. In 2003 5 ton of concrete was taken away as to not hurt people and vehicles. In September 2005 parts of Slussen was closed off for heavy traffic because of a risk of landslides. There are constant renovations needed and only these costs 3-5 million kr. a year. Which is why “Nya Slussen” is being questions repeatedly. Many people believe that it wil ruin a lot of the beauty that is slussen. However, you need to factor in the fact that the New Slussen is necessary for safety reasons. As previously stated many roads and birdges have been closed down for safety precautions. The new model will make this a safer place, with a natural place for pedestrians and vehicles. It will also make for a more a better water traffic solution.
The building plan for “Nya Slussen” will begin year 2012 and will stand finished earliest 2018. The estimated cost is about 6,3 billion kronor.
Slussen in current state
http://www.svd.se/multimedia/dynamic/00419/sluss_419413q.jpg |
Reconstruction is not a question; it’s a demand
The reconstruction of slussen has had controversial reactions to it. The planning of the reconstruction of slussen started already in 2008 when 5 construction firms Atelier Jean Nouvel and Habiter Autrement, BIG, Foster + Partners and Berg Arkitektkontor, Nyréns and Wingårdh were chosen to draw up different proposals to how slussen was going to be re built. The company that was chosen was Foster + Partners and Berg Arkitektkontor and they have been working on developing that proposal until now in 2010 when they revealed what they were going to do. The plan is to have these now features:
- New pedestrian quaysides culminating in a central “water plaza” around the Slussen lock
- Dynamic new public spaces and water terraces extending out from the City Museum.
- A spacious transport interchange with new bus terminal and new entrance to the Metro station.
- A new pedestrian footbridge over Slussen on the historic route into the old city.
- A roadway system that causes minimum disruption to street life within the new city quarter.
- A new waterfront frontage to Södermalm with a scale to fit with the existing built fabric.
- A diverse range of buildings suitable for retail, commercial, residential and cultural uses.
One of the designs of Slussen’s future outcome
http://www.knutpunktslussen.se/filer/file/Nya%20Slussen.JPG |
Some people think that this is a terrible mistake. They don’t like the idea of the rebuilding because they think that it is taking away from the nature just to add more shopping and work buildings. Also people are worried about the effects this will that on the lake mälaren. The construction agency has said to there defense that the lake will be fine and un harmed. Although still environmentalists worry and lead protests about this. On the other had the re building is necessary because the slussen areas foundations and the frame work of a lot of buildings is weak and faltering. That is why we have to act fast to fix it. The rebuilding is due to start 2012 and finish in 2018.
Report Written by:
Ofelia Kurpatow, Johanna Filipson, Lucia Johansson
0 Responses to “The New Slussen: Also an Improved Slussen?”