Visionary development project in Høje Taastrup represents the suburban future

Høje Taastrup C has gone from wide boulevards and clearly divided zones to a coherent, dynamic urban area with a great flow between housing, nature, cafés, traffic, and recreative spaces. COBE has been in charge of the architectonic design that allows residents, nature, city life and infrastructure to interact and benefit from one another. As main engineer consultant, Ramboll are responsible for planning and implementing this visionary project. Ramboll has, among other things, been in charge of an extremely complex relocation of existing wires and pipes (water, electricity etc.). According to Martin Christensen, senior project manager in Ramboll Water, this relocation has been one of the most complex tasks he has ever experienced. Ramboll has also been in charge of planning and execution of all project phases, risk analysis and management, planning and execution of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), stakeholder management and much more.

Høje Taastrup C stands out as a prime example on how to design urban areas suited for the future. The project is accommodating a need for housing and climate resilience, but also includes the aspect of social and economic sustainability. The design reflects an overall consideration of what makes a place attractive to live in, and how to design a public space that provides the best conditions for social inclusion and recreational purposes. This approach will help strengthen the relation between residents and the area they live in, increasing the overall level of liveability. The result is a public park of 42.000 square meters that includes the world’s longest skatepark, climate adaptation, playgrounds, benches, fruit trees, and an advanced lighting design that will ensure lighting at all times for people to feel safe.

To increase the level sustainability of the project, Ramboll has reused material from previous infrastructure, making sure to decrease the carbon footprint and save resources. 5000 tons of concrete from old bridges have been crushed and reused as road base, and dredged soil has been incorporated in the implementation of the green areas of the park. Høje Taastrup C is also an amazing example of brilliant climate adaptation. To optimize the water management, separate rain- and wastewater pipes have been placed across the area. Now, rainwater will travel through rain gardens down to the park area and on to an open rainwater pond. From there, Ramboll has established an irrigation system that will use the collected rainwater to irrigate the park. During heavy rain, excess rainwater will be led from the rainwater pond to the skatepark that also serves as a detention pond. The skatepark is designed by COBE and the Danish Olympic skater Rune Glifberg. It has a capacity of 6500 cubic meters and runs approximately 1 km, making it the world’s longest skatepark. It can handle up to a 10-year rainstorm on a daily basis and up to a 100-year rainstorm during cloudbursts. The skatepark will thus help lead and detain rainwater, while serving as a great recreational space for current and future residents and visitors. Furthermore, the area has undergone a site preparation as to avoid rainwater flowing into City2, the local mall. As predicted, Høje Taastrup C is already an extremely popular area, and all building plots for new housing have been sold, with the majority now being under construction.