AVS. Arkitektúr verktækni skipulag - 01.06.2003, Page 30

directions. You have to wait for
an opportunity to make it to the
pavement on the other side. An
imposing double of Grettir the
strong, Eyvindur of the mountain
and Bjartur has yet to deliver
what he is carrying to the ceme-
tery but he is defiantly headed
towards the Melar district. He has
booked a room at the hotel
Saga. „**
Reykjavík has, in a considerably
short period, changed from a
town to a city. This development
has not taken place without some
growing pains, both positive and
negative. The younger generation
emphasises city qualities and
lifestyle in a broad sense: high-
quality housing environment with
good communications, offering
numerous possibilities.
In the new development plan for
Reykjavík, the fact that the city is
becoming international is reflect-
ed. It emphasises a denser devel-
opment and better use of land
that results in an improved use of
the city’s service systems. This
emphasis requires delicate plan-
ning, and there are numerous
aspects that need consideration.
Because of the young age of
Reykjavík, it is easy to read the
history of the city through its
architecture and morphology. In
the Development Plan 1962-
1982, new concrete housing was
planned to replace the old timber
houses in the City Centre. This
development took a long time
and later more emphasis was put
on the preservation of the old
timber houses, such as the
Bernhöftstorfa which resulted in
the preservation of „Old
Reykjavík" in the City Centre.
Today few people would be with-
out these houses, which con-
tribute to the strong character of
the Central City.
It is important when we define
ourselves as a capital and an
international city to retain certain
unique local qualities. We can
only go far internationally by
retaining our indíviduality and
what separates us culturally and
socially from other cities. It is a
complex undertaking to retain this
individuality and, bearing preser-
vation and modernisation in mind,
demands and emphasis. The
1960’s ideas of large-scale dem-
olition of old houses can perhaps
be traced to the desire to get rid
of the parochial environment and
to build a „proper city.“ However,
as Rome was not built in a day,
every epoch has its own aspira-
tions and individuality.
The task of the planning authori-
ties of Reykjavík in the near future
is to work in a creative way with
the definitions of preservation and
renovation. Not necessarily as
contrasting points of view, but in
such a way that in every instance
it is evaluated what should and
should not be preserved. When
a denser development is empha-
sised, we must realise that in
some instances it is unavoidable
that new replaces the old. An
example of that can be found
in the „brewery area“ in Njálsgata
where the proposed building of
new flats will no doubt strengthen
development in the area. North
of this area is the road
Laugavegur where new ideas are
being carried out, reflecting the
new detail plan for the area. New
demands and emphasis is reflect-
ed in the building of car parks on
upper Laugavegur; new and
modern buildings blending with
the old timber houses and con-
crete townhouses from the mid-
dle of last century make this, our
main shopping street, very
charming.
The conclusion is Preservation
and redevelopment can go well
hand-in-hand as long as we
approach each with an open
mind, respecting the task at hand
and without extremes in either
direction. ■
Quotes:
* Elías Mar (Sóleyjarsaga I,
1954)
** Jón Karl Helgason (Hetjan og
höfundurinn, 1998)
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