Karlavagnsplatsen ─ the Nordic area's tallest building

This proposal presents an elegant monolith with an airy, almost sheer expression. The skyscraper’s composition is based upon the transparency of the glass in different stages. The high-rise is simple in its structure but creates excitement in an efficient way by rotating the building’s volume by 90 degrees from the 56th floor. A rooftop destination with an inviting skywalk is also proposed.
The composition expresses an exclusivity requiring careful execution, with finesse of detail, to achieve the airy, transparent effect.
The confidence of the superstructure is not seen in the rest of the proposal. The neighboring high-rise can only be seen as standing in for some imagined volume that could be placed there. The jury feels this proposal would have been improved by allowing the skyscraper to exist as the monolith it expresses, free of competition.
Scale-wise the towering structure works well, but the design of the surrounding urban space is not as well-defined. Though it provides opportunities for good space arrangements this is not fully taken in hand, and the area’s structures feel apprehensively positioned. North-south connections have been realized well. Good neutral public spaces focused on pedestrians and cyclists results in a human and attractive milieu. The homes in the skyscraper are compositionally inferior to its external shape, and it is unclear which walls are meant to be glass and which are meant to be load-bearing walls.
The balconies, which far from all apartments possess, are light and entirely encased in glass. The jury questions their usefulness from several perspectives. Partly, a balcony more than one hundred meters up that is made entirely of glass may feel unsafe. Partly, the balconies’ dimensions are rather small, which may inhibit furnishing possibilities. The jury suspects the balconies may come to be used as storage spaces, or be covered up. Certainly the balconies could be noise-protected. It is also relatively easy to see from the balconies into the adjacent residences.
The proposal is well thought out and has good grip on design, constructability, and environment-friendly engineering. The buildings described use both heating and cooling in a resourceful way. Nevertheless the jury wonders what the thermal climate will be like in the high-rise.
The proposal presents a good portrayal of the ground floors which are attractive, and provide the opportunity for twenty-four hour activity that is largely perceived as safe.
There is a risk of wind tunnel effects resulting from the curved facade of the lower body of the building. Trees positioned to counter the resulting wind are excellent examples of the use of greenery as a resource in the urban environment. Green roofs for absorption of storm water works. Indigenous species are easily maintained over time and require less maintenance.