Pa Soder Crescent

This vast redevelopment project for the site formerly occupied by Stockholm’s South Station integrates a central crescent building framing a plaza, two blocks to the south and three blocks on the avenue leading off to the west. The composition is monumental, yet open and friendly. A perfect balance between interior and exterior spaces gives a strong civil identity to the area.

The program includes 310 apartments, underground car park, retail area and offices. Special attention was paid to community facilities situated in the small plazas behind the crescent.

All apartments have dual orientation north-south or east-west.  The day zone, which includes the living and dining room, and the night zone, which offers maximum privacy to the bedrooms, are clearly separated. Apartments enjoy large windows opening onto the plaza while some balconies are located on the south part of the building. Lifts and fire stairs open directly to a semi-private foyer, shared by two apartments.

The heart of the masterplan is the 180 m diameter crescent-shaped plaza whose axis is the pedestrian path going from the South Station to Medborgar square. This plaza, mainly paved, is punctuated by few groups of trees and displays a central pool of water transformed into a skating rink during the winter. Within this central urban space slightly off axis, a sculpture obelisk serves as an element of composition and as a lighting feature.

The scheme incorporates an open-air theatre to encourage social and cultural outdoor activities. This area mediates between the plaza and the less formal English-like garden behind.

The masterplan involved a new circulation scheme that defines an entirely pedestrian axis crossing the different spaces generating a spatial sequence from the South Station to the high plaza. The existing system of streets was reserved to pedestrian circulation but allowed slow vehicle traffic. The reduction of vehicle traffic significantly improved the quality of the environment. Underground parking below the buildings with direct access to the apartments was provided.

This project offered the opportunity to introduce the techniques of precast architectonic concrete extensively developed by RBTA in France. The lines of the façade take after the Nordic classical tradition and show considerable subtlety and purity.

The exterior facade was made of high quality architectural light coloured concrete, which shows a “Naples” yellow hue that is common to many buildings in Stockholm. As an alternative to natural stone, artificial reinforced stone offered improved finish qualities, high resistance and durability.