Kids City

Copenhagen is growing exponentially each year. Projections show that we’ll also see the number of children from 0-18 years in the city expand. If we are to guarantee welfare for children in a future of fewer resources and increased demands for efficiency, it calls for innovation!

With the name ‘Kids City’, NORD Architects, in close collaboration with COBE, PK3 Landscape Architects and the engineering company, Grontmij and the future users, have re-thought the way we create and operate day care institutions. Kids City illustrates how the welfare buildings of tomorrow can guarantee that spatial quality and the highest level of welfare services can go hand in hand.

It is situated on a triangular plot in Christianshavn, between the urban blocks of the main street and Freetown Christiania.

The project’s ambition is to create a city for children 710 children and young people between the ages 0-15. Despite requiring three times more users than an average Danish childcare centre, Kids City has been designed so that, in terms of scale and character, it will accommodate the child as an individual, instead of portraying an enlarged version of a traditional day care centre.

The project offers the best developmental conditions for the children, and rethinks usage in the form of multi-functional and flexible buildings, able to accommodate both current and future needs. We call this ‘intelligent’ sqm. The result is that large areas can be used for a range of functions, which move beyond the day care centre and school, thus also benefiting the cultural and recreational life of the local community.