AVS. Arkitektúr verktækni skipulag - 01.06.2005, Page 48

strong and close knit “academy”,
combining the educational, scien-
tific, non-governmental, and busi-
ness communities into a network,
which would be vital for UR’s future
success in the international arena.
This group agreed on the loca-
tion in Vatnsmýri. That location
strengthens the position of UR
because of its proximity to a pow-
erful educational and research
community, business centres, and
various university related activities.
The Vatnsmýri site is also an obvi-
ous choice for industrial research
facilities, and is also more attractive
for institutions and growth indus-
tries than Urriðaholt. Government
offices, financial and law firms as
well as other businesses are also
closer to Vatnsmýri than Urriðaholt.
Young people living together are
also more interested in being able
to choose between two universi-
ties in the same area and hence
being able to live in student flats
near Vatnsmýri instead of having to
choose between two universities a
comparatively long distance apart.
The academic village in Vatnsmýri
will contribute to denser develop-
ment in this area and create a
unique opportunity for lcelanders.
An academic village is already
growing in Vatnsmýri. Reykjavík
will allocate a considerable area of
land for the UR as well as student
housing to further this growth. The
Vatnsmýri area has the neces-
sary infrastructure and an excellent
location in Reykjavík for recreation
activities and culture near to the
heart of the city, which is an attrac-
tion for students, foreign guests,
and collaborators. Vatnsmýri is
also well situated for conferences
and meetings, with good access
to hotels due to the increase in
hotels in the city centre and the
proposed music hall and confer-
ence centre near Reykjavík harbour.
In Reykjavík the risk of the UR
during the settlement period is also
less and there is also less uncer-
tainty about future development. In
Gardabær, on the other hand, there
is less uncertainty about planning
permissions for initial work but it
is first and foremost a question of
time and cannot therefore be given
much weight in an assessment
of the future location of the UR.
The risk is therefore greater in
Urriðaholt. Risk is a crucial fac-
tor for the UR as the university is
not wealthy and has to get off to a
good start at its new location. The
existing infrastructure in Vatnsmýri,
a less disruptive distance to move,
and a strong location from the
beginning reduces the risk to the
UR during this settlement period.
The future proposed for Urriðaholt
is that of a social unit or a univer-
sity village that has no precedent
in lceland. Many issues have to be
resolved for the ideology to work
and this has often been difficult
abroad. It can be assumed that it
will take a long time to develop this
idea and there is always the risk that
it might fail. That does not change
the fact that Urriðaholt is an excel-
lent location with a great future. In
Vatnsmýri one is building a new
university in an environment that is
fairly fixed and well connected to the
educational and research commu-
nity, centres of business and vari-
ous university-connected activities.
The risk is therefore considerably
higher in Urriðaholt in Garðabær.
The competitive po-
sition of the UR is
stronger in the
Vatnsmýri
After a thorough evalu-
ation of the above choices
the conclusion was clear.
• Both alternatives fulfil in general
terms the spatial demands.
• There is some difference between
the planning and technical
aspects of the choices but
no one facet is dominate and
they equal each other out.
• Policy issues and risk are, on the
other hand, decisive and conclu-
sive in the decision as to loca-
tion and there everyone whose
opinion was sought agreed. The
Vatnsmýri is the better choice.
What one can learn from this
exercise is that when one is deal-
ing with a complicated, difficult,
and very pressing case one has
to be very thorough and methodi-
cal and stay focused on the main
goals. It is, for instance a common
mistake in the choice of software to
be fooled by the looks, salesman-
ship and peripherals that are of little
or no importance in comparison to
how well the equipment fulfils its
task. The clear vision of the future
of the UR, the role of the university
and guiding principles, in addition to
professional evaluation of how each
location met these criteria has been
decisive, and facilitated considerably
the decision of those responsible
for the university. In this spirit a con-
sidered and professional decision
was reached. Hopefully the choice
will benefit UR in the years to come.
The task at hand is now to make
sure that such will be the case. ■