The FMV shipyard in Fredrikstad was an economic victim of the recent movement of shipbuilding and ship repair to the Far East, and the site of the abandoned shipyard has remained largely vacant since 1989.   The 2,500 jobs lost by the closure - largely skilled manual workers - have been replaced on the site by 2,500 new jobs in high-tech manufacturing, office and tertiary study, but the new buildings containing these uses occupy less than 5% of the site area.   The sprawling town, though only 1 hour by car or rail from the capital Oslo, is not considered a desirable place to live by Norwegians and there is little inward migration and no population growth, despite progressive environmental policies.

The shipyard site is located on the island of Kråkerøy, across a narrow canal from the city centre, and suffers from difficult access by road.   A new pedestrian bridge associated with recent masterplan based on luxury apartments has been constructed, but the plan is in abeyance following poor sales.   A proposed new road bridge funded by the state will improve access to the site but there is no indication of when it will be implemented.   It is also apparent that at current rates of growth the shipyard site would take many years to build out.

Participants in the INTBAU Summer School devised a strategy for flexible subdivision and disposal of land that could be adapted to changing market conditions over time.   Central to the proposal - originated by participants in a summer school, and since developed further - is a walkable street network.   The site lies between outlying suburbs and the city centre and the construction of a linking road through the site would allow a shorter journey for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians to the existing city centre.   The generation of movement of people is central to the strategy for activating the site.

The proposal includes both waterfront sites and sites for apartment blocks.  All buildings will be in timber framed construction, for reasons of both sustainability and so that they may easily be relocated should it become desirable to build to a higher density in future.   The limited amount of commercial space in the development is located on the main movement spine, and placed so that the majority of new buildings are within 400m, or a five minutes' walk.   The efficiency of the connected street layout in reducing walking distances is marked in comparison to adjoining post-war suburbs with their dendritic street layouts.

The scheme was presented to the site owners and municipality both at the summer school and following further development in December 2002.   Both are enthusiastic about the ideas shown, which have changed their view of the potential of the site.   Further development of the proposal is expected in the future.

The developed proposal To view the full size drawings, please click on the images below.   Study area and site boundary Significant landscape features Midwinter midday overshadowing Key concepts Land Use   Figure-ground diagram (existing)   Movement network (existing)   Shipyard heritage elements (existing)   Plot sizes (existing)   Areas within 400m walk of centres   Figure-ground diagram (proposed)   Movement network (proposed)   Shipyard heritage elements integrated   Plot sizes (proposed)   Stage one development

Further Information

If you are interested in finding out more about the Fredrikstad charrette, please visit the Byens Fornyelse website or contact INTBAU.

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