Ulsholtveien 31, Oslo

The Betanien Foundation in Oslo has developed its property at Kirkehøy in Furuset, Oslo, to give young people a housing opportunity. In cooperation with FutureBuilt, the Betanien Foundation held a competition for first-time homes in Furuset. The competition was won by Haugen/Zohar Architects.

The winning entry created enthusiasm and has become a project with high architectural quality, good compact residential units, as well as generous common areas both indoors and out. The project achieves high environmental standards on transport, materials and energy.

The original main building, where the Methodist church for many years ran a children’s home and kindergarten, is totally renovated and converted in to nine flats and a ground floor common area. A new entrance was established with an elevator to the loft, and new dormer windows installed in the loft, facing south and north. On the western side of the property, which is approximately 4,8 hectares, two new townhouse-like buildings with a total of 27 apartments in three different sizes have been constructed.

The main building and the townhouses are grouped around a large common garden area that opens out to recreation areas to the south. The development has its own bicycle pavilion with workshop and a bike pool located beside the main entrance, which it is hoped will encourage bicycle use. Other visible environmental initiatives are the extensive use of wooden materials, solar hot water panels and a sedum roof.

The project relates to the green qualities of the neighbourhood by preserving the existing garden in front of the main building as a shared outdoor area for the residents, surrounded by the existing building and 27 new townhouses. The existing building has been converted to nine flats and common areas. A bicycle pavilion constructed near the entrance will be a valuable space for bicycle maintenance and group activities. The project is an important example in Furuset because it can inspire further residential development in the area.

Low carbon strategies

Greenhouse gas emissions for the new townhouse buildings have been reduced by a total of 44 percent, while the restored building shows a reduction of 37 percent. These are compared to a reference building with a standard that meets the Norwegian building regulations of 2010 (TEK 10).

The reduction in the new building is attributed to the extensive use of cross laminated wood elements in the walls, floors and roof, giving a 45 percent reduction in emissions from materials. Emissions from energy use for the new buildings have been reduced by 67 percent through passive house construction, thermal solar collectors, grey water recycling and solar PV panels. Emissions from transport have been reduced by 30 percent through strategies including an electric car charging station and facilities for car-sharing.

Ulsholtveien 31 has the potential to be a model project for bicycle use. Through the establishment of a large number of bicycle parking spaces, low availability of car parking spaces, the implementation of car-sharing, and the construction of a bicycle pavilion with workshop and bike pool, residents are encouraged to choose two wheels instead of four.

The new buildings fulfil passive house standard, while the existing building meets the requirements of Husbanken´s program for rehabilitation that is above TEK 10 standard. This results in a much lower energy demand and was achieved by high levels of insulation as well as low u-value doors and windows. A heat pump coupled with energy wells provides heat to each flat. Solar PV panels provide electricity for local use or for sale in the event of overproduction. Tap water is heated using heat exchangers connected to waste water, combined with solar thermal panels located on the roof of the existing building. Balanced ventilation is provided locally via small wall-mounted units in each flat. In order to build awareness each dwelling has its own digital meters for energy and water consumption, and is billed according to individual consumption.

The new buildings´ walls, roof and slabs are constructed using cross-laminated timber. The use of prefabricated elements saved time and costs in production, transport and building. Cross-laminated timer is also well-suited to subdividing adjacent flats with respect to fire safety. Inside each unit the load-bearing cross-laminated elements are visible and surface treated with a moisture permeable, natural and environmentally-friendly wood oil. Linoleum is used on the floors.

The shared spaces and 8 of the 9 flats in Furuhuset are accessible to wheelchair users and are connected to a new elevator. In the townhouses, the ground floor flats are accessible to wheelchair users while flats in the floor above are accessed via stairs. A lifting platform can also be installed to access the second-floor flats if necessary in the future.

More information: - Architects project description - "A future at Furuset. Ulsholtveien 31, Oslo" (Arkitektur, issue 7, 2017)

Bymiljø og arkitektur

Eiendommen ligger på et høydedrag, og tomtens topografi karakteriseres av et slakt fall mot sør og en brattere skrent mot vest. Kirkehøy, Furuset kulturpark og områdene rundt Furuset kirke ligger som et sammenhengende grøntområde. Prosjektet henvender seg til dette grøntdraget ved å bevare eksisterende hage foran hovedhuset. De to nye rekkehusene er lagt på vestsiden av tomten, og alle de 27 leilighetene i nybyggene har innganger til dette uteområdet. Intensjonen er å legge til rette for et aktivt, sosialt uterom.

Nybyggene fremstår med en leken form. Det er lagt vekt på markante, identitetsskapende inngangssoner, markert i ulike farger. Det opprinnelige hovedhuset er blitt totalt ombygget og rehabilitert til ni leiligheter, i tillegg til fellesarealer med en stor terrasse mot sør til felles hage. Rekken med boder danner avslutningen mot tomtegrense i nord og skjermer for kald nordavind. Ved adkomsten til Ulsholtveien 31 er det bygd et verksted for sykkelmekking og andre aktiviteter som inviterer også andre inn i felleskapet.

Selv om bygningsmassen på tomta har økt og utearealene er redusert er artsrikdommen mangedoblet. De tidligere dominerende plenarealene er redusert og erstattet med blomstrende eng og det er plantet spiselig planter, i alt 41 ulike arter og sorter. Dronninga Landskap ar utarbeidet en publikasjon: Oversikt over spiselige vekster i hagen som presenterer plantene. Her finnes også oppskrifter hvor de ulike plantene er ingredienser.

PROJECT DETAILS

PROJECT TEAM

Map

ATTACHMENTS

• Erfaringer fra Ulsholtveien 31 (Susanne Kralik, Stiftelsen Betanien Oslo, november 2020)

• Brosjyre Ulsholtveien 31

• Rapport klimagassregnskap - Ulsholtveien 31- "som bygget"

• Konkurransebidraget: God morgen Alna