Reykjavík Grapevine - 16.08.2013, Page 27

and Ólöf Arnalds have seized the uncer-
tainty in city planning and of construction
as an opportunity to run artist collectives,
hold rehearsal spaces, and even throw im-
promptu concerts while the structures sit in
limbo.
RUNNING ON EMPTY
Regardless, whether or not the health of
a scene is dependent on the venues that
house it, the individuals that operate those
venues, the bands who grow mutually with
the venues, and the people that generate
the scene should not be disregarded as just
another cohesive and resilient entity. "Of
course he [Einar] is right, nothing lasts for-
ever," Arnar agrees, "places come and go,
but that does not justify the hotels coming
in here downtown and wiping us out."
"I'm really going to miss it," Arnar says
regretfully from behind the bar of Faktorý
on one of its final days. "These three years
have been unbelievable. It’s been a really
crazy ride, We got to know so many good
people—the bands, the staff, everybody."
Unfortunately, because of approval of the
hotel plans, the Faktorý dynamic as we
know it becomes a thing of the past. Arnar
admits he does not plan on continuing Fak-
torý without the Faktorý house. "This house
is just totally perfect for it. I would never
move Faktorý to a lesser house because
people would just constantly compare the
two," he explains. "It was a shithole when
we got it and we have been fixing it for
three years—installing the toilets, expand-
ing the stage, opening up the side room for
musicians—and it's so weird to think finally
when we got the house just as we wanted,
finally when it is ready, we have to leave it."
Einar may be right that it would be a mis-
take to tie creativity to a single, physical
space, but one would be just as mistaken
to disregard the work of the individuals that
goes into making these spaces available.
Not to mention, there is a value in having
a space to collectivise and thus branch out-
ward from into other creative endeavours.
In the end, it’s not a matter of evil hotels
versus poor, helpless artists. It’s a matter
of supply and demand, and the responsive
cry for explicit long-term, contextual plan-
ning. Musical and youth cultures are his-
torically nomadic. It's part of what makes
the scene, the scene. That said, we cannot
take its existence for granted. The presence
of such venues and cultural landmarks are
assets to the tourism industry, and more
importantly, are valuable in themselves.
But we should keep in mind the ghosts of
optimistic development that now linger, un-
inhabited and unsightly on the outskirts of
Reykjavík, those construction projects that
were never occupied, or never completed in
the first place.
Eager optimism in any industry is like
a disease with late blooming symptoms.
You only recognise it after it is too late to
do anything about it. In order to thrive, the
City of Reykjavík must proceed with cau-
tion, think bigger-picture while still credit-
ing the individual—think contextually—and
learns to evaluate things in non-monetary
measurements.
27 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 12 — 2013
Black Pearl
Tryggvagötu 18a
4×120 m× Suites
6×75 m× Suites
2000 m×
Opened July 15
Hotel by Harpa
250 Rooms
30.000 m×
Opens 2016
Hotel by Hljóma-
lindarreitur
142 Rooms
6000 m×
Opens 2015
Hotel by Höfða-
torg
342 Rooms
17.000 m×
Opens 2015
Íslandsbankareitur
Lækjargata 12
According to the city's
Master Plan proposal for
210-2030, developments
here will include a hotel.
Landsímareitur
Ingólfstorg
(NASA plot)
According to the city's
Master Plan proposal
for 2010-2030, develop-
ments here will include
a hotel.
Reykjavík Lights
Hotel
105 Rooms
4.000 m×
Opened June 1
Types of accommodation:
Hotel
Guesthouse
Hostel
Bed & Breakfast
Apartments
The new Reykjavík Municipal Plan will be on display at city hall as well as available online at adalskipulag.is
until September 20, for those who would like to familiarise themselves with the details and offer feedback.
Map appears in the new Reykjavík Municipal Plan.