Halmtorvet - a new storm drain

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Sønder Boulevard - the wide street running out to the south east through Vesterbro from the west side of the main railway station - is now partly blocked with high hoardings like those that were used around main sites for engineering work when the metro was constructed. However, this site is not for the metro but for major engineering work to construct a massive storm drain.

It is part of a scheme for rain-storm mitigation for Frederiksberg and, when completed, it will be about 1.25 kilometres long to take storm water from Sankt Jørgens Sø out to the harbour with an outlet just east of the Copenhagen Island Hotel on Kalvebod Brygge … close to the swimming area in the harbour at Fisketorvet.

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Bygningspræmiering … annual building awards in Copenhagen

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Despite the actual name, the Building Awards are not just awarded to buildings so the list of winners includes a wide range of urban projects that make a big difference to how we see and how we enjoy the streetscape of the city.

 

 

This public telephone box - now in the collection of Designmuseum Danmark - was called ‘The Question Mark’ for obvious reason. It was designed by Klavs Heleweg-Larsens for Kjøbenhavns Telefon Aktieselskab and they were first installed in the city in 1981 and received an award in 1986. The last of these phone boxes was removed in 2017 although there is a proposal to bring some back after they have been revamped to provide tourist information.

 

 

The mural on a gable end in Halmtorvet was painted by Peter Abelin in 1991 and received an award in 1992. Over the years, several other murals around the city have been similarly recognised.

 

 

 

The marble pavement for Amagertorv was designed by the Office of the City Architect and received an award in 1994. This complicated geometric pattern, covering such a large and irregularly-shaped area, was designed using CAD, then new in drawing offices. The success of the scheme meant that adjoining public spaces were in turn redesigned with new paving in stone extending through Højbro Plads, Ved Stranden and Gammel Strand.

 

In Copenhagen, you can find yourself walking all over an award-winning design without even realising.