BIG . L2 Arkitekter . G. Gulliksen

Town hall Quarter . Førde

source: BIG . L2 Arkitekter . G. Gulliksen . more

An urban space, rather than a building. One of the Town Hall Quarter's most important challenges is to create a common reference point for Førde's inhabitants and new citizens. Instead of building a town hall as a single architectural object that one can admire from distance, we propose to distort the insides out of the Town Hall Quarter and create the framework for a new town hall square in the heart of the Town Hall. In shelter from the weather, surrounded by government offices and workplaces, the Town Hall Square will create the possibilities for every conceivable activity from political meetings to the public parties, open-air theater, film shows, flea market etc. to serve as a gathering place for the citizens of Førde. This requires a significant architectural presence in the city. At the same time the Town Hall Quarter emerges as an integral part of the surrounding city's character and scale. The building needs to be bold and well-adjusted, unique and local at the same time. To construct the Town Hall Quarter as a monolithic block would dominate the surroundings and appear in a strange scale for Førde. Rather than a large building, we propose to create a City Hall Quarter of individual buildings. As a public village the Town Hall Quarter emerges as an inviting neighborhood with streets and rooms for the citizens of Førde.