FOJAB designs nature-oriented neighborhood with historical heritage

Åstaden will be a new neighborhood in Kävlinge, Skåne, which includes both a cultural-historical industrial environment and a nature trail next to the Kävlinge River. Together with Lantmännen, Hemsö and Kävlinge municipality, FOJAB has developed the planning program. Work is now beginning on the first detailed plan.

Åstaden is strategically located between Kävlinge and Furulund in western Skåne, a four-minute bike ride from each train station. Here, a small town environment will emerge with 1900 new homes of various types and tenures, commerce and community services in the form of schools, preschools, housing for the elderly and a medical center.

Åstaden is divided into four different sub-areas, all with different characters based on their respective conditions: Trädgårdsstaden, Åkvarteren, Bethyllan and Sockerbruket. The latter includes the old sugar mill with factory buildings from the late 19th century and associated staff housing and offices in a lush park environment. Significant parts of the industrial historical environments will be preserved and given new content.

In Åstaden, as much attention is paid to the quality of housing as to outdoor activities, the spaces between buildings, meetings and experiences. The Kävlingeån river will be a major asset in the district, providing opportunities for ecological corridors and nature close to homes. The currently inaccessible and unused land around the river will be developed with a nature trail. In the plan, the river walk is proposed to become a 2.5 kilometer long continuous wetland and recreational area and the district's green meeting place.

- "We have worked a lot on managing high water flows in and around Kävlingeån," says Pia Månsson, responsible architect at FOJAB. "With the help of wide green paths and areas that delay the water, we create an attractive and at the same time resilient environment that will prevent flooding.

The development will take place in stages. The first to undergo detailed planning is the northern parts of the area around the old sugar mill. This is Åstaden's major hub that will house the area's new square, school, services and housing in both apartment buildings and terraced houses.

- We see a unique opportunity to create a neighborhood close to nature in harmony with the landscape and the cultural environment on the site. An area with a mix of house types and housing forms that gives people of all ages the opportunity to live here, where there is great proximity to services and with unbeatable regional accessibility in western Skåne," says Masoud Taheri, Head of Development at Lantmännen Fastigheter AB.