FOJAB designs Vänersborg's new district court

A turnkey contract has now been signed for new premises for Vänersborg District Court, designed by FOJAB. The design of the new court building will start immediately and construction is expected to start in the fall of 2023. Planned completion is the summer of 2026.

Vänersborg's new district court is strategically located near the railway station and will strengthen the transition between the park with its older institutional buildings and the old stone town. The design language is basically simple with a few character-creating features. The green ceramic of the façade gives the building a clear identity that relates to the city's many copper roofs and the greenery of the adjacent park.

- The ceramic panels are slightly curved, which creates effective shadows on the facade - a bit like the ripples of water on Lake Vänern. "A solution that combines beauty with sustainability and efficient construction," says Kjell Adamsson, responsible architect at FOJAB.

The court building houses around 130 workstations, 11 courtrooms, including two security rooms, security control and reception, public areas, staff offices, and transport and detention rooms. Designing a court building is an intricate puzzle. People in the building - the public, prosecutors and judges, court staff and detainees - are classified into four different security levels. Their paths must not cross on their way in and out of the courtrooms. Vänersborg District Court will have separate entrances to all courtrooms and separate flows throughout the building, with separate evacuation routes.

- "FOJAB has great expertise when it comes to court buildings. This means that we can offer Vänersborg an extremely functional district court with high architectural quality," says Hanna Tengberg, project developer at Hemsö.

The building is prepared for possible future expansion in such a way that safety zones and flows are ensured.

- Courts are installation-heavy operations and we have built in flexibility that enables continuous development and updating. Future-proofing the building is also an important sustainability aspect," says architect Kjell Adamsson.