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Article from issue 1+2/2009 »Roofs«

Apartment Mound in Copenhagen

documentation p. 52 - 57
Architect BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group | Structural Engineer Moe & Brødsgaard |

Construction work has been a constant in restad City – between Copenhagen’s centre and its airport – since the new millennium began. A new district is arising here which will in the near future be the focus of the resund region. The rapid transit connection, with driverless trains, is already in operation. The VM Bjerget project – the third building segment, north of House V and House M – is an unconventional mix of parking garage and terraced apartments. The client’s brief foresaw a parking garage on two thirds of the site and a residential structure on the remaining third. But instead of placing two buildings next to each other, the architects merged the functions in a single structure.
The parking garage, which accommodates 480 automobiles, completely covers the site and serves as the base for the eighty apartments. Generously scaled terraces, facing south, step down ten storeys and furnish views to the landscape and Tarnby, the neighbouring village. Offsets in the building massing and broad balustrades protect the residents’ privacy.
The apartments accompanying these terraces are drenched in sunlight, and depending upon the season, overlook a lush roofscape. Planters – containing, for example, ivy, clematis and honeysuckle – were installed under the teakwood planks sheathing the balustrade. A centralized irrigation system supplies water to the plants. In contrast to the timber-clad residential facades, the parking levels are cloaked in aluminium sheets perforated to depict Mount Everest.
The circulation system for pedestrians consists of a steel stairway and a diagonal lift. The automobiles pass below the colourful, glazed walkways leading to the apartments. And the walkways, in turn, offer glimpses down to the motorized traffic. The highest spaces in the cathedral-like landscape inside the mound soar sixteen metres and constitute a clear departure from what is expected of parking garages. The boundary between public and private spheres is situated deep inside this topography: On the upper levels, the residents’ parking spaces are right outside the apartment door.

Details
1:20 Section parallel to slope
1:20 Section perpendicular to slope
1:750 Floor plans
1:750 Section
1:8000 Site plan

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Apartment Mound in Copenhagen