Malmö:
Ekostaden Augustenborg Sustainable Regeneration of an urban neighborhood
Malmö:
| |
| Country: | a) Western Europe | ,b) Sweden |
| Language: | |
| Type: | Project |
| Area: | District/Quarter, 100,000 - 1 mill. |
| Actors: | Publ.-priv. partnership |
| Funding: | Local government, National government, European Union, Publ.-priv. partnership |
| Topics: | Employment |
| Renewable resources | |
| Urban renewal / Urban rehabilitation | |
| Objectives: | Improve living conditions |
| Increase green areas | |
| Increase use of public transport | |
| Reduce car mobility | |
| Waste recycling | |
| Instruments: | Demonstration and pilot project |
| Integrated planning approach | |
| Public participation |
Ekostaden Augustenborg, as one of Sweden’s largest urban sustainability projects, is the collective name for a program to make the Augustenborg City District in Malmö into a more socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable neighborhood. Augustenborg was originally built at the end of the 1940s to international acclaim, but has over the decades suffered from general neglect, economic decline and severe unemployment. This urban renewal project is worthy of attention for the following reasons:
Augustenborg was in the post-war period a pioneer of new Swedish housing policy. The new People's Home was to offer high quality accommodation combined with local schools, shops, employment, social facilities and a pleasant environment. Now the City of Malmö and the housing company MKB are working together to integrate current ecological technologies into efforts to re-stimulate social and economic community development.
Augustenborg, hit harder than most areas of Sweden by problems associated with unemployment, is now being rejuvenated by a long-term redevelopment process that has a focus in the Ekostaden program. This project deals with the local residential area as well as the school, industrial area and local businesses.
The Augustenborg neighborhood, with about 3,000 residents, has been faced with some of the highest rates of unemployment Sweden in recent years due to the decline in traditional heavy industries. Augustenborg is also challenged with high levels of resident turnover and a high percentage of immigrants. Ekostaden projects have generally incorporated opportunities for resident involvement, meaning discussion workshops and other interactive activities have been created. Informal evening gatherings, meetings dealing with specific topics, and study tours to other Swedish cities have all been carried out. With the assistance of the European URBAN program, a variety of community cultural events have been organized.
A number of new businesses have been established in the area. Street Train Sweden for example has formed to develop and market the concept of the electric street train. A local resident is pioneering new designs for rainwater systems that are being tested in Augustenborg. A new management company is being considered for the administration of the area's waste and water systems as well as open and green spaces. This company may employ local residents, perhaps in the form of a cooperative. Other jobs have been created on a short-term basis through various Ekostaden projects.
Augustenborg projects have prioritised safety and comfort for pedestrians and cyclists as well as public transport, and worked to decrease local traffic speeds and through traffic in general. While all of Augustenborg will have a 30 km/h speed limit, Garden Streets are also being developed that have a 15 km/h limit. These efforts and an encouragement of a local use of electric vehicles are also leading to reductions in noise and air pollution in Augustenborg. The first "Electric Carpool" in Sweden has been organized as a form of local car-sharing in Augustenborg. Electric cars can be picked up and returned to the parking lots of a local supermarket.
A number of initiatives have been directed toward decreasing resource consumption. Major efforts have among other things re-insulated apartment buildings, worked to raise the awareness of residents concerning energy and water use, and re-organized local water and energy infrastructures.
A significant initiative aims to recycle at least 90% of Augustenborg's waste, through a system that is intended not just to increase recycling but also to create new job opportunities The approximately 1700 households are all provided with small bins for separating their own wastes, which they then take to one of 13 neighborhood Resource Houses where there are large containers for all types of recyclables. The Resource Houses also house large automatic composting machines, and themselves are built with green roofs.
A major incentive for the redevelopment of Augustenborg was serious annual flooding and related sewage system troubles. An objective in response to this is to locally collect and handle at least 70% of the rainwater. Above-grade canal systems and ponds creatively deal with the rainwater and add positive elements to the landscape.
Scandinavia's largest green roof has being built in Augustenborg. The 9,500 m2 Botanical Roof Garden, while adding a layer of insulation and positively impacting the local ecosystem, is primarily being developed to locally minimise rainwater run-off and to serve as a demonstration and research project for such systems in Scandinavia. With local, national and European funding, the Botanical Roof Garden involves partnerships with several universities and private companies.
Augustenborg school pupils have been involved in a number of local developments, for example with the planning of a new community/school garden, rainwater collection pond/ice rink, and ecological building projects. New structures have been built using local clay and straw, and incorporating green roofs and solar energy panels. The new music garden and playground invites children to create their own sounds by interacting with a variety of wood and metal structures.
Promoted as the "world's first electric road train", Augustenborg's green street train service has been developed to decrease car dependence and improve the mobility options available to area residents, for example senior citizens and people with health problems and low incomes. Two of these trains, each with space for 28 passengers and capable of going 30 km/h, are now in service, having been built by the new local company Street Train Sweden AB. The Trains, powered by renewable energy sources and riding on rubber wheels, offer new employment opportunities as well as an ecological transport alternative.
Ekostaden is supported through a partnership between the MKB housing company - which as a newly formed company in 1948 developed the Augustenborg neighorhood - and local partners within Malmö City and Fosie District. The project is further financed by the Swedish government's Local Investments Programme for Ecological Conversion and Eco-Cycle Programme, as well as the European Union's LIFE and URBAN programs and a number of other sources both public and private. The total cost of Ekostaden Augustenborg and related projects is in excess of 100 million Swedish Kr.
The initial Ekostaden programme is expected to be completed in 2001, but is envisioned as the beginning of a long-term community development process. By the end of 2000 many of the initiatives had already been successfully implemented, collectively building a strong foundation for activities in the coming years.
ekostaden augustenborg (2000) Augustenborg eco (newsletter) No 1 2000
ekostaden augustenborg
www.ekostaden.com
City of Malmö
www.malmo.se/english/welcome
Malmö Environmental Department
www.miljo.malmo.se
| Name | : | Granberg |
| Firstname | : | Anna |
| Telefon | : | ++46 (0)40 34 74 34 |
| Telefax | : | ++46 (0)40 34 74 35 |
| Address | : | Ekostaden Augustenborg |
| Augustenborgsgården | ||
| Ystadvägen 52 | ||
| 214 45 Malmö | ||
| Sweden |
Malmö is Sweden’s third largest municipality and the commercial center for southern Sweden. The City’s population has increased over the last decade due to significant immigration, and about 25% of Malmö’s residents have foreign roots.
The historical City District is surrounded by a system of canals and bridges. While Malmö has long been a well-established trade city, including links by water, land, and air, Malmö is now connected to Copenhagen through the Øresund Bridge, which was opened on July 1, 2000. The Øresund ”Fixed Link” is both a tunnel and a bridge between Sweden and Denmark, and includes both a new motorway and railway.
The new Malmö University places an emphasis on multi-disciplinary research in collaboration with many regional public and private institutions. There are about 9,000 companies in Malmö and approx. 120,000 jobs. Malmö is making significant efforts to transform itself from a city of industry to being a city of culture and research, but in the transition is having to deal with considerable unemployment.
Project was added at 28.08.2001
Project was changed at 28.08.2001