They pillaged much of northern Europe, so why not plan a super-nautical hub Arctic city 40 years in advance?

I lived the strip-mall suburban life for 13 years. I don’t think anyone sat down and planned out that situation 40 years in advance. I love that this unknown (until now) city in the Arctic is schooling us on how to take a seat, and plan things carefully for the future, not the developer.

These guys even considered bird migratory routes in their planning. Anyone who knows me realizes what this means, that I’m changing my nationality to Norwegian.

Here is Vardø, Norway’s 40-year plan (via archdaily):

With the decline of the fishing industry and construction of the Svartnes tunnel and airport, the harbour front has devolved into a set of vacant industrial sheds and un-moored dockings; the centre of civic life has been dispersed into living rooms, airport lounges, one hour excursions of Hurtigruten tourists and an annual snowball fight.

A set of cultural buildings and spaces inserted into the harbour front can serve to regenerate the civic life of the area and attract new users to the community. With the next era of Norwegian energy production set to exploit reserves proximate to Vardø, the harbour will act to service the industry while protecting the fragile ecology of the region.

Gorgeous. Tell me more.

2010 : Cultural Indicators

Spatially, at the scale of the civic landscape, cultural Arenas constructed along the harbour’s edge will begin to (re)generate a relationship with the Barentsz Sea. These public spaces, each defining a distinct set of uses, serve as the seeds for future development of the harbour’s edge.

2030 : Emerging Economies

Vardø’s near future will be formed by its advantageous geographic relationship to the warming industrial climate of the Barentsz Sea. The inherent conflict between offshore oil production and ecological preservation could yield a diverse set of economic and architectural opportunities that would convert oil revenues into a framework for a post-oil paradigm. To protect and preserve the ecologies of the Barentsz Sea, Vardø’s unique relationship to avian migratory routes and invasive aquatic species ideally positions it as an arctic outpost of Ornithology and marine biology.

2050 : Rising Levels

Norway’s post-oil economy will need to establish alternate, localised and diversified modes of productions to maintain the qualities of remote urban life afforded through oil production and transport. Energy, generated from the powerful offshore Arctic winds, will sustain local requirements with surplus being distributed south into the European Grid.

Winning architects: LRA | Project specs