The Anker Garden in Hamar

The in-between city

Between the city centre and the rural idyll, between busy urban environment and quiet suburban life, a new type of housing development is proposed: Combining the urban and suburban typologies into one plan. Varied housing types adapted to different people and types of housing create an attractive urban and residential landscape, linked to both the larger and the local landscape. Anker Garden becomes a car-free district, emphasising walking, cycling and public transport. Proposed in environmentally friendly materials and solid wood structures, the community will have its own energy and food production and offers integrated shared spaces, trade and leisure services.

A new green axis opens and connects the centre and periphery, from the waterfront promenade through the lawn’s extensive generosity, to forest roads and paths through dense pine forest. Two new urban and landscape nodes are established:

The Bowl – the lower level of the park is extended under the ring road, an amphitheatre in the landscape creating a car free passage and a landscape space for recreation and activity.

The Hub – in the plan’s junction for pedestrian and bicycle paths as well as public transport, a local café with covered outdoor seating and a market place is established as a meeting point for the entire area.

The plan is planned around three urban and landscape spaces:

The Viewpoint – an attraction with a pavilion along the green main axis.

The Anker Garden – a generous courtyard for the new dwellings, with a size that accommodates a variety of activities from ball games to skate ramps, from open lawns to sheltered barbecues, from free play to playgrounds, places for taking part in or contemplate the local city life.

The Activity Garden – a garden with a focus on planting and horticulture, which together with the Hub forms a diagonal connection through the courtyard and further on to nearby schools and sports facilities.