The
municipality of Rødovre, Denmark, announced MVRDV and
co-
architect ADEPT winner of the design competition of the
Rødovre Skyscraper. The 116 meter tall tower
accommodates apartments, a hotel, retail and offices. A
public park and a plaza are also part of the privately
funded scheme.
The skyscraper’s shape reflects
Copenhagen’s historical spire and present day high-rise
blending in the skyline of the city, it further combines the
two distinctive typologies of Rødovre, the single family
home and the skyscraper in a vertical village.
Consideration of these local characteristics leads to
Copenhagen’s first contemporary high-rise.
Responding to unstable markets the design is based on a
flexible grid, allowing alteration of the program by re-
designating units. These ‘pixels’ are each 60 square meters
square and
arranged around the central core of the building, which for
flexibility consists of three bundled cores allowing separate
access to the different program segments.
On the lower floors the volume is slim to create space for
the surrounding public plaza with retail and restaurants;
the lower part of the high rise consists of offices, the
middle part leans north in order to create a variety of sky
gardens that are terraced along the south side. This
creates a stacked neighbourhood, a Sky Village. From this
south orientation the apartments are benefitting. The top
of the building will be occupied by a hotel enjoying the
view towards Copenhagen city centre.
Flexibility for adaptation is one of the best sustainable
characteristics of a building. Besides this the Sky Village
will also integrate the latest technologies according to the
progressive Danish environmental standards. Furthermore
the plans include a greywater circuit, the use of 40%
recycled concrete in the foundation and a variety of energy
producing devices on the façade.
A public park adjacent to the Sky Village is part of the
project and will be refurbished with additional vegetation
and the construction of a ‘superbench’, a meandering public
path and bench. A playground, picnic area and exercise
areas for elderly citizens are also part of the
plan.
Lead architect MVRDV and co-architect ADEPT Architects
won the competition from BIG, Behnisch and MAD.
Sustainable skyscraper by MVRDV

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- Elena Sommariva
- 04 November 2008
