Reimagining the future of terrain vague in a former military base. The path that connects community of Ásbrú

Abstract

This study is devoted to the problem of public space in the former American military base in Iceland - Ásbrú. This base developed over a period of 55 years from 1951 and during this time a well-functioning city- base was formed, where all the services and places needed by the city were available, creating an almost socially independent place (an island within an island). The army left the base in 2006 and the area (nearly 5 km2) was handed over to the municipality of Reykjanesbær. Since then, several studies and planning documents (municipal masterplan) have been published. I find it necessary to answer the question - how can we create a social space that fills the voids between the buildings in a place that was strategically planned as a military base? The project attempts to define the future of the place in the context of a developing mini-metropolis – Reykjanesbæer.Ásbrú touches on a number of problems: density of the development; vastness of the empty unused spaces; problems of integrating the di- verse local community, relying mainly on private cars for transportation within the area. I see great potential for the place to become a catalyst for a strong local community open to co-creating a space that is accessible within walking distance. The design of the public space, together with the vision for the densification of the mega-quarter development, is based on a spatial narrative that guides the viewer along a path that was built in 2022 and runs through the central part of Ásbrú. The design of the central part of Ásbrú is based on the creation of differentiated mikrohabitats, i.e. neighbourhood and natural units that form a system - makrohabitat, connected by pedestrian paths. By freely moving around Ásbrú on foot, people create their own mind map, and build up a sense of belonging to the place.In order to develop the concept of the plan, research was carried out in the form of site visits, a survey was conducted among some of the residents, and the history of the military base was analysed.