schmidt hammer lassen architects wins masterplan in Norway

Straume Sjøfront is a dense, contemporary urban development spread across three new islands and comprising residential, business, and hotel facilities in addition to a harbour where visitors can moor their boats.

The new development is situated at the foot of Straume's steep cliffs, placing it right out in Straume Sound and marking a clear boundary between the mountains and the water.

The Norwegian jury were impressed by the way in which the practice’s design for Straume Sjøfront responds so imaginatively to its location creating a distinctive new community between water and mountainside

In selecting the winning proposal, the jury said: "This proposal represents an interesting interpretation of the situation, with tall buildings along the water's edge and lower buildings towards the mountain slope. As a result, the project has no traditional rear side, but rather two front sides (…) The project places the tall buildings at the periphery of the area and thereby clearly highlights itself in relation to its surroundings.”

The proposal include plans for an intimate canalside milieu situated in the area between the cliffs and the main development. Water is a key theme in the development, the three individual islands are separated by canals which give each of them an individual character.

The unusual location and the masterplan combine to create a rare development in which a dense urban setting sits directly alongside a sweeping natural environment. The plans include a mixture of residential properties of various designs and scales, fostering a diverse architectural and social environment.

"I believe that the homes of the future will offer more varied life;” explains Astrid Reikvam, architect and manager of the Oslo branch of schmidt hammer lassen architects. "People should ideally be able to live in a dynamic urban environment close to their work, friends and family, while at the same time in close contact with nature – all too often, the choice must be one or the other."

schmidt hammer lassen architects share first prize in the competition with the Norwegian architectural practice HLM architects.