The proposal of the winning team was chosen by a unanimous jury.

At a public event today, A. Enggaard revealed that the Vandkunsten and SLA team won the architectural competition for the development of Odense Inner Harbor. The proposal of the winning team was chosen by a unanimous jury.

The jury consisted of representatives from the partnership behind the development of Odense Inner Harbor, as well as two expert judges appointed by the Danish Association of Architects. Odense Municipality and Odense Harbor were represented in the jury with speaking rights but without voting rights.

The jury stated:

“The proposal for Odense Harbor City stands out as a well-developed, solid, and exciting proposal, which provides an optimal basis for further work on the district development plan for Odense Inner Harbor. The proposal strikes a very good balance between the strategic level and the overall physical concept. This means that the parties involved in the development can build upon the overall physical concept and the proposed strategies, refine and adapt them in the process towards a final district development plan.”

Next step in the development of the harbor district

“Odense Harbor is a historic and ambitious urban development project that holds tremendous potential to become a new positive example in Odense, following the success of Thomas B. Thriges Gade. It transforms from a lake and forest area to an industrial harbor and major workplace, and eventually into a modern mixed-use urban and residential area for future generations. It’s a unique opportunity that must not be missed!” says Jan Albrechtsen, partner at Vandkunsten.

The proposal is a development plan for the area, which will now be further refined and qualified into an actual district development plan. In this process, elements from the two other competition proposals may also be incorporated into the district development plan. A. Enggaard and Odense Municipality will collaborate, in dialogue with the city’s residents and other landowners in the area, to develop the district development plan based on the winning proposal. The district development plan will then be subjected to political review, followed by the preparation of building permit-granting local plans before the future perspectives can be realized.

“Odense Harbor is an important part of the city’s history and identity. It has turned Odense into a waterfront city, provided us with jobs, and given us a view of the world around us. We must keep this in mind as we develop the inner harbor – with respect for history and a focus on the great potential of expanding Odense towards the water and bringing the city all the way to the harbor quay. We want exciting architecture and much more life in the area, and now we are a big step closer to achieving that. Therefore, it also makes me happy that a winning project has been chosen with a focus on creating a diverse district with high-quality experiences for different people,” says Mayor Peter Rahbæk Juel.

“It has been a long and exciting process following the competition, and I feel that we now have a good starting point for the further work. A. Enggaard’s competition for the development of Odense Inner Harbor has generated many good ideas and proposals, and we can now see the outlines of a new and exciting waterfront district. I am looking forward to the development of the district development plan, where we will combine the inner harbor’s potential with the winning team’s project. I am excited to invite other landowners, the city’s residents, and stakeholders to be part of the work and contribute to how Odense Inner Harbor should be further developed,” says Søren Windell, Councilor for City and Culture (C).

“We have now selected the proposal that we believe can provide the best foundation for the ongoing development of Odense Inner Harbor. This is a development that will take place over many years, and therefore, the plan must be able to adapt to changes in the housing market, new knowledge, and emerging requirements. We will now work on refining the winning team’s proposal into a strong district development plan that will make Odense Inner Harbor a fantastic place to live and visit,” says contractor Asger Enggaard.

“Odense Inner Harbor is filled with contrasts today. The large empty silos reflect the industrial history and almost stand like a Fynish Manhattan in the middle of the entrance, surrounded by beech forest almost down to the water’s edge. New and old meet in different scales and qualities. It is in the contrast between history and modernity, between the green and the built environment, and the diverse water spaces that the very essence of the harbor’s DNA and the solution to the task emerge. Based on this understanding, we have designed a robust plan with diverse neighborhoods, blending urban and landscape spaces, interconnected with each other and with the rest of Odense,” says Jan Albrechtsen, partner at Vandkunsten.

The three teams are:

·         EFFEKT and Tredje Natur with LYTT, SWECO and BRIQ Group
·         Vandkunsten and SLA wiht Cushman & Wakefield/RED, Mogens A. Morgen, EKJ Rådgivende Ingeniører and Linq Trafik
·         Henning Larsen and ADEPT with Rambøll, PlanScape, ORCA and Vida Local

Read more about the project, the three competition proposals and the jury’s evaluation her

We look forward to collaborating with A. Enggaard and the team in the further process!