Karen Blixens Plads stretches over an area of approx. 22.400 m² and connects the University of Copenhagen South Campus and the Humanities and Law Library with the green areas of Amager Fælled. The square is one of the largest public spaces in Copenhagen. In addition to functioning as an urban meeting place for university students, it includes more than 2000 bicycle parking spots which are convenient for the many visitors, employees, and students.
CN3 won the architectural competition, together with the architecture firm, COBE. The square gradually transitions into a park, linking the university in the north with Amager Fælled in the south. To integrate the many bicycle parking spots in the hilly landscape, they are placed in lowered bicycle beds as well as inside the domes. The open and welcoming urban space is an innovative and multi-functional design that accommodates and promotes green transportation, climate change adaptation and biodiversity.
The most prominent and complicated elements of the project were the three bicycle hills which required advanced modelling and detailed design. Each of the in situ concrete shells spans 40 meters and is supported by post-tensioned ring beams. In the competition phase, CN3 engineered the concept and completed static calculations and descriptions of the shell’s design and production. In the design phase, CN3 completed preliminary and detailed designs for the concrete structures, including the 3D design of the concrete domes, drawings, and design- and construction documents.
In 2020, Karen Blixens Plads won the Dezeen Award for being the best landscape project.
