LOCATION
The meeting took place at Järla Sjö; Nacka is Sweden’s newly built urban
neighbourhood located 10 minutes from Stockholm City. An appendix to the
Proceedings describes the site in more detail.
Järla Sjö – a mixed site -
just outside Stockholm
One of Järla Sjö’s developers,
Wihlborgs Fastigheter AB, helped to sponsor the meeting. Wihlborgs
Fastigheter AB offering an elegant meeting hall in the centre of Järla Sjö
and provided lunch. They presented the site to participants during the
session and a walk around the area.
THE MEETING
Joanna Alimanestianu welcomed participants.
The first session comprised panel presentations from Harald Kegler, Robert
Adam, Matthew Hardy and Javier Cenicacelaya on the aims of the Council for
European Urbanism. This was followed by an open discussion on the proposed
Charter and all participants had an opportunity to assist in making final
adjustments to the text, which is reproduced below.
Presentations from the developer and project architects of Järla Sjö, Nacka
preceded lunch which was followed by a guided walk around the new
neighborhood.
All participants then took part in signing the Charter.
Meeting,
Stockholm, 2003
Valuable input from Andres Duany,
Ellen Greenberg, Robert Gibbs and Robert Adam assisted in the process of
both finalising the Charter and considering future actions.
Finally there was a discussion on setting up a structure and secretariat
function for the CEU. Members of an Interim Steering Committee were elected
and it was agreed that the secretariat would be Oslo based under the
stewardship of Audun Engh of Byens Fornyelse, funds permitting.
THE COMMITTEE
Members of the Interim Steering Committee elected by the participants for
office over the next year are:
Joanna Alimanestianu, Belgium
José Baganha, Portugal
Harald Kegler, Germany (Deputy Chair)
Luigi Mollo, Italy
Peter Elmlund, Sweden
Louise Nystrom, Sweden
Audun Engh, Norway (Secretary)
Matthew Hardy, UK (Technical adviser)
Susan Parham, UK (Chair)
THE SECRETARIAT
Following finalisation of funding, it is intended to set up a secretariat
for the CEU in the Oslo office of Byens Fornyelse under the direction of
Audun Engh, contact details audun.engh@broadpark.no, +47.92622626
CONTACTS
Matthew Hardy has set up email based user groups for both the interim
Steering Committee (CEU_SC@yahoogroups.com) and CEU members (CEU-list@yahoogroups.com).
FUTURE ACTION
The Interim Steering Committee met over for the first time and flagged a
draft programme of events to take place over the coming two years.
Tentatively these include the following:
• Viseu Education Seminar: It was proposed to hold a CEU Steering Committee
meeting at the Viseu School of Architecture, Portugal, preferably in Spring
2004, to coincide with a mini-seminar on education, organised in
collaboration with the Viseu School. Prof José Baganha has very kindly
offered to host the event. The Viseu meeting will also discuss CEU
Government and the plans for the Bologna conference.
• Bologna Conference 2004: CEU has been invited to participate in the “A
Vision of Europe Conference” planned for Bologna in Autumn 2004. Professor
Luigi Mollo will contact Gabriele Tagliaventi for more details about the
event.
• Congress, Berlin: Professor Harald Kegler is the Steering Committee
representative for the proposed 2005 World Congress in Berlin, and will
write a report about plans for this event. He will also contact Karl-Heinz
Maschmeier in this regard.
TASK FORCES
It was agreed that the CEU would set up task forces to pursue particular
aspects of European urbanism. An open discussion with members on all aspects
of task force themes and structure should begin as soon as possible.
THE CHARTER
The Charter is reproduced below. Additional supporting text is currently
being finalised under the editorial direction of Robert Adam.
THE CHARTER FOR EUROPEAN URBANISM
Stockholm, 6 November 2003
MISSION
The Council for European Urbanism is dedicated to the well being of present
and future generations through the advancement of humane cities, towns,
villages and countryside in Europe.
CHALLENGE
Cities, towns and villages are being destroyed by social exclusion and
isolation, urban sprawl, waste of land and cultural resources,
monofunctional development, lack of competitiveness, and a loss of respect
for local and regional culture.
OBJECTIVES
Cities, towns and villages should have mixed uses and social diversity; make
efficient and sustainable use of buildings, land and other resources; be
safe and accessible by foot, bicycle, car and public transport; have clearly
defined boundaries at all stages of development; have streets and spaces
formed by an architecture that respects local history, climate, landscape
and geography; and have a variety that allows for the evolution of society,
function and design.
ACTION
The CEU will promote: the distinctive character of European cities, towns,
villages and countryside; consolidation, renewal and growth in keeping with
regional identity and the aspirations of citizens; where appropriate, the
creation of new towns and villages according to these objectives; the
reorganisation and redesign of declining suburbs into thriving mixed use
areas; respect for the natural environment and its balance with human
habitation; and the protection of our built and landscape heritage.
CONTEXT
The CEU recognises that physical improvement cannot stand alone. Cities,
towns, villages and the countryside are a reflection of their social,
political, economic and environmental context. Any improvement in physical
surroundings must be part of a wider advancement of the well-being of the
people of Europe.
POLICY, REGULATION AND PRACTICE
The CEU will work for the change, amendment and refinement of economic
practices, public policies, law, regulations, guidance and standards of
practice at a European, national, regional and local level to further the
objectives of this charter.
PROCESS AND PARTICIPATION
The CEU will re-invigorate the relationship between the community,
inhabitants and all concerned parties through a process of participation in
planning, design, building and management.
THE CEU
The CEU is a network of members which will implement the principles
expressed in this charter.
LIST OF CHARTER SIGNERS AND PARTICIPANTS
A list will be circulated as soon as possible.
APPENDIX ONE - THE MEETING SITE
This is Järla Sjö
Järla
Sjö (Lake Järla)
From industrial estate
to small town
The ’Järla Sjö’ district is developed on a site of industrial historical
importance at the Lake Järla in Nacka, Stockholm, Sweden. The district plan
is founded on a small town structure, scale and contents — a proper basis
for attaining a human and socially tenable urban environment. We can find
this plan in many beloved sites in Sweden, often by the water, for example
in Norrtälje, Arboga, Strömstad and Trosa. These sites have many visitors,
from tourists to local strollers, at the same time as they are among our
most valued and popular environments for living and work.
The plan for Järla Sjö
Järla Sjö has a mixture of housing and business premises. This provides a
rich and varied environment; the site is populated both during day and
night. The businesses make the district vital with shops, handicrafts,
schools and established companies. In Järla Sjö the ”neighbourhood
principle” prevails. Our entire daily needs can be found within walking
distance.
In the plan for Järla Sjö new buildings are incorporated with the old
settlement. The basis is that all the old buildings are kept, which means
that one has to justify the pulling down, not the protection of buildings.
Pulling down a building has to be justified by strong reasons, for example
contamination. As a result of the industrial enterprises the ground has
partly been polluted and has been cleared of slums.
The goal in designing the new houses has been to make them varied, full of
nuances and inspiring.
The streets emanate from the original structure. The plan pattern has also
been influenced by the structures and the trees. By that means the
historical traces are kept for future generations and the urban environment
becomes substantial and exciting. One ambition has been to take advantage of
the existing nature. This means minimising interference with the ground,
making room for greening everywhere, allowing gardening as far as possible
and other recreation close to people’s houses. It is a custom of the people
living in Järla to go swimming where the beach has now been planned.
People’s outdoor movement is concentrated on the streets, the market and the
park. The placing of the houses up to the street alignment makes the street
spaces sheltered. The entrances are facing the public streets. It should be
easy to make contact in places where you can talk, for example seats and
cafés. In Järla Sjö the street and the market make a meeting place, a
shopping space and a traffic space for different kind of vehicles.
The main street goes round the whole area. It is suitable for public
transport; it has a separate pavement and curbstone parking. Broad-leaf
trees are planted along the street.
The streets enclose blocks. The blocks have secure yards to the advantage of
the children. Here the people on the lower floors have a small private
garden with patio with plant growing possibilities. In the middle of the
garden there is a common space for play and social intercourse. Many of the
houses have a private forecourt facing the street.
The blocks have low houses. They can contain detached houses, semi-detached
houses, terraced houses and apartment blocks. A rule of thumb is that the
houses shouldn’t be higher than the crowns of the trees, as high houses make
the neighbourhood windy. Low houses (the average number of floors in Järla
Sjö is around 3), yards surrounded by buildings, closed street rooms and
plenty of vegetation creates a good local climate. Small-scale also improves
the requirements for security, the feeling of homeliness and social control.
The buildings have a human scale, which means that they are not higher than
you can open a window and talk to someone on the ground. Nobody should feel
small and dejected because of the size of the houses.
The distance between the buildings facilitates eye contact. You can say
hello to your neighbour in the house just opposite and the children in the
yard are in full view from the kitchen window.
Around every yard there are maximally 40 flats, so that everybody knows
their neighbours and where they live. Furthermore, every entrance shouldn’t
include more people than it is possible to get to know. This creates a
feeling of community and group affiliation.
The buildings should allow a mixture of age groups and housing categories.
For this reason the flats within each block have different sizes.
The kitchens are facing the yard. You get to the garden on the ground floor
from the kitchen, which makes it into the centre of private life, a place
where you can work and be together and a natural link between indoors and
outdoors. Patios and cultivation of your own garden-patch gives grown-ups a
reason to be outdoors. They meet other people and it is safe for children to
have grown-ups near by.
The living rooms are located towards the street, which means there will be a
light on in many windows in this direction in the evenings. This makes the
street more pleasant in the evenings. Houses with the entrances and windows
facing the street create a cosier and safer street environment, as the
people in the houses get an open view of the street.
The parking places will be used both for business premises and houses. The
parking places in blocks with mainly houses are small, isolated and
connected to the buildings. It is easier to incorporate small parking spaces
without dominating the townscape.
There will be clear boundaries between private space, ground common to
everybody in the neighbourhood and public areas. This facilitates the
understanding between people and increases their participation, sense of
responsibility and feeling of homeliness. The boundaries between the
different spaces are defined both legally and by markings on the ground.
This is accomplished by vegetation, pathways, fences, natural formations,
and the organisation of the buildings etc. In this way everybody will know
which space they are in. There is an explicit system for who is responsible
for the maintenance of the different spaces in the neighbourhood.
APPENDIX TWO - SITE VIST TO SANKT ERIK
On Friday following the charter launch, a number of participants visited the
Sankt Erik site in inner Stockholm. This development is sited on an old
hospital site closed in the late 1980s, for which there were high
expectations around the proposal to create an extensive housing complex.
Some of the original hospital (the workhouse and maintenance buildings) were
saved. The remainder of the development comprised a range of housing, mostly
in terrace and apartment forms. Some is centred on an urban space in the
form of a ‘circus’ containing a local church that was moved to its new
position within the circus. The development also addresses the urban edge to
the river through a strong wall of housing and an axis or ‘sweep’ flanked by
two new residential towers and terminating in a substantial stairway and
pond located within the river side park.
Sankt Erik’s character is reinforced by its tower elements, sculpture and
interesting apartment typologies, which deal with difficult site constraints
(for sun access for example) in an imaginative and highly urban way. Its
connection to urban greenery is reinforced by substantial tree planting and
landscaping.
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