Case studies

The FjordCity of Oslo: past, present and future

ABSTRACT

The City of Oslo, Capital of Norway, was founded in approximately 980 A.D. Its historic development has made the waterfront subject to environmental problems such as a barrier between the city and the fjord, noise and pollution of air, water, sediments and soil, and areas slipping out of the ”mental” city map. The City Council decided in 2000 (after much debate) upon the FjordCity strategy, which is to relocate and make the transport and cargo areas at the waterfront more effective. The released areas are to be used for urban development to include dwellings, commerce, offices, recreation and culture in a sustainable urban development, aiming for enhanced quality of life.

The FjordCity’s 225 hectares are divided into 13 project areas, all with their own conditions, co ordinations and progress of development. Two areas are completed, three areas are under construction, two are planned and waiting for construction to start and six are currently under planning review.

The financing of the internal infrastructure in each project area is handled with contracts of development between the City of Oslo and the developer, except the expensive E-18 motorway tunnel under the bay of Bjørvika. There is a need for cross financing between different project areas also to finance the reorganisation of the cargo terminals in the port.

BIOGRAPHY

Stein Kolstø, Head of Office, Oslo Waterfront Planning Office, Norway

Stein Kolstø graduated as a civil architect from the University of Trondheim, with a diploma taken 1988. In 1999 he finished his Master of Arts in Urbanism at the School of Architecture in Oslo, with the thesis “Change and Conservation in the City”.

After winning the planning contest in 1989 and following up the zoning for the Olympic arenas in Lillehammer for the Olympics 1994, he started his career as an urban planner and project leader in the City of Oslo at the Agency for Planning and Building Services. He remained in this position until 2002 and these ten years were spent on tasks related to the Inner City of Oslo and the Oslo Waterfront.

Since 2002 Stein has been Head of Office for the new Oslo Waterfront Planning Office (OWPO), a special task unit focusing specifically on the Oslo Waterfront. OWPO is a multidisciplinary office, staffed with seven persons and located in a harbour shed close to the site of the new national waterfront located opera house. OWPO’s mandate is to do the planning work for the Oslo Waterfront leading up to political decisions, undertake information work as necessary and to improve cooperation between private, public and civil organisations.

Click here to go back to case studies main menu.