Årstabergsparken

The Årstaberg park - a hill-top park in Årstadal, Stockholm. An area that, before the park was built, often came into focus when debating the lack of space dedicated for children in cities. As we build denser cities, the importance of creating accessible space for public use becomes greater. The park is a perfect example of how to create accessible nature and play areas by refining and developing an existing site without losing any of its original characteristics.

Much had to be resolved before the 12 hectares became a functioning district park. The area was fragmented, the steep slopes made the nature difficult to access, connections within the surroundings needed improvement and the fragmented ecological connections needed to be strengthened. In the same time there were several requirements from the municipalities to preserve the ecologically valuable site and to increase biodiversity.

The walkways are key to accessible recreation in the steep terrain. Therefore, we have created a denser network of paths, comfortable stairs, benches, lighting and signs. The park also provides and create opportunities for play on and along the walkways making the journey its own reward. We´ve added shortcuts especially for children, such as a narrow staircase carved from the rock, a rope ladder, and a slide next to one of the walkways. For everyone reaching the top of the park, new experiences await with both viewpoints and playgrounds.

We want the visitors to use the nature and all its elements for play. Parts of the forest has been thinned out, the wood is used for play and put in so-called pin terminals where you can go and collect material to build wood huts. Logs of fallen trees are used in balance games and for seating around barbecue areas.

The project has improved the current conditions of the site and made the area more accessible, for both children and adults. The otherwise dense area of Årstadal now has a large, fun and diverse park that they share with all of Stockholm.