Sveaplan offices
2021 Competition, 1st Prize, ongoing.
The new block at the last corner of Sveavägen, the main street connecting Stockholm city to the north, is the result of a new and more urban traffic solution that will eliminate an oversized existing roundabout and a subterranean pedestrian crossing. It will be a block that consists of one single building and forms a corner stone that completes this part of the inner city urban fabric. It relates to a surrounding of rather different scales and street characters: the large and busy scale of the main street Sveavägen in east and north, a local housing street to the south and a new more intimate and protected alley created along the existing office building to the west of the site.
The new building volume is shaped in plan by two curved facades that allow for some well needed extra space next to the Sveavägen main crossing as well as around a planned footbridge in the north. The roof section is stepped in two levels that meet surrounding building heights. Facades are made of red brick and arched windows are placed in a regular rhythm around the entire building, well known materials and details that can be found among many fine examples of Stockholm’s architectural heritage. At street level, the scale of the arches are larger and allows for a flexible structure of entrances, shop windows, access to service functions and an underground bike garage.
From a distance, it is the overall character of the rounded and stepped building that fits into the existing urban fabric. At closer range, the careful detailing of the brick façades becomes visible where each window has a thin brick frame, while a rustic brick pattern manifests the base of the building and deeper stepped brick frames highlight the main entrances.