Amerika Plads (
lit. "America Square") is a public square and surrounding neighbourhood in the
Østerbro
Østerbro () is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. It is located just north of the city centre, outside the old city gate Østerport which, after it was moved around 1700, used to be located close to present-day ...
district of
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
,
Denmark
Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
. It is the result of a redevelopment of an area in the southern part of the former
Freeport of Copenhagen
The Free Port of Copenhagen is a bonded area in the northern part of Port of Copenhagen of Copenhagen, Denmark. Created to consolidate Copenhagen's position as an important maritime hub in Northern Europe, it was established in the area just nor ...
into a mixed-use neighbourhood which consists of dwellings, offices and retail establishments, combining converted historic buildings and modern architecture. The former Free Port Station building was put in storage during the redevelopment and is now located in the middle of the square where it serves as a café. The area is to the west bounded by
Kalkbrænderihavnsgade, part of a major thoroughfare, and to the east by Dampfærgevej connected to Kalkbrænderihavnsgade in both ends and separating Amerika Plads from
America Quay, the western quay of the
Southern Free Port dock. The name of the area, like that of the quay, is a reference to the ''
Amerikabåten'', large passenger ships which used to transport Danish emigrants to
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
during the first half of the 20th century.
History
Dating from circa 1903, the name Dampfærgevej (English: Steam Ferry Road) refers to the steam ferries to
Malmö
Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...
which used to berth on the north side of the area. The Copenhagen-Malmö link was founded as a joined venture between the Swedish and Danish state railways in 1895 in connection with the opening of the new free port in Copenhagen. The Amerika Plads neighbourhood is located in the former steam ferry terrain. The route was discontinued in 1974.
In 1986, the premises were taken over by DanLink which operated a cargo line on the route Copenhagen-
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , ), is a Urban areas in Sweden, city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania County, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, ninth ...
until 30 June 2000 when it closed due to the opening of the
Øresund Bridge
The Øresund or Öresund Bridge is a combined List of road–rail bridges, railway and motorway cable-stayed bridge across the Øresund strait between Denmark and Sweden. It is the second longest bridge in Europe and combines both roadway and r ...
.
Redevelopment
Due to the area's attractive location on the border between Østerbro and the
City Centre
A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...
and near some of the most expensive addresses in Copenhagen, it was decided to redevelop the area in the late 1990s. It happened as a joint venture between
Port of Copenhagen
The Port of Copenhagen () is the largest Denmark, Danish seaport and one of the largest ports in the Baltic Sea basin. It extends from Svanemølle Beach in the north to Hvidovre in the south. Along with Malmö harbour, Copenhagen Port is operate ...
(now
CPH City & Port Development) and private development companies TK Development and Sjælsø Gruppen. In 2000, Port of Copenhagen commissioned Dutch architects
West 8
West 8 is an urban planning and landscape architecture firm founded by Adriaan Geuze and Paul van Beek in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1987. It is known for its contemporary designs and innovative solutions to urban planning problems using lighting, m ...
to draw up a masterplan for the transformation of the area. The aim of the plan is to create a dense and active urban environment with multiple functions and diverse architecture. As part of the masterplan, the new buildings all have interior courtyards that are accessible to the public, unlike those in the older parts of the city, so as to expand the street areas and create life and movement between the buildings.
The neighbourhood comprises about 50,000 em2 of renovated buildings and 95,000 em2 of new buildings distributed on 53,000 em2 of offices and buildings and about 42,000 em2 of dwellings.
The square
The square is dominated by the former Free Port Railway Station which was dismantled in 2002 and rebuilt in 2005 to serve as a café pavilion near its original location. The half-timbered
National Romantic
Romantic nationalism (also national romanticism, organic nationalism, identity nationalism) is the form of nationalism in which the state claims its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs. This includes ...
building from 1895 was designed by
Heinrich Wenck, who also designed
Copenhagen Central Station
Copenhagen Central Station (, ; abbreviated ''København H'', colloquially usually referred to as ''Hovedbanegården'' or simply ''Hovedbanen'') is the Central station, main railway station in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the largest railway station ...
and numerous other railway stations around the country, and served as a hub for the Copenhagen-Malmö ferries.
Buildings and residents
Among the older buildings in the area is the former headquarters of
Nordisk Fjer which was built in 1901. It now serves as headquarters for
Banedanmark
Banedanmark (; previously Banestyrelsen) is a Danish agency that is responsible for the maintenance and traffic control on all of the state owned Danish railway network.
History
In 1997, Banedanmark came into existence, having been branched o ...
. The Twin Warehouses, also known as Warehouse D and E, were built in the 1920s. Other historic buildings are found along Dampfærgevej.
The most prominent modern buildings in the area are the Copper Tower on the north side of the area, next to the Ferry Terminal, and Fyrtårnet (en. The Lighthouse) on its south side. The Copper Tower is a 16-storey, copper-clad office building which was designed by
Arkitema
Arkitema Architects is a Danish architectural firm headquartered in Aarhus, with branch offices in Copenhagen, Malmö, Stockholm and Oslo. Arkitema Architects was founded in 1969 in Aarhus, and nowadays has about 400 employees with its main activ ...
and built in 2004. It houses the law firm
Plesner as well as an Italian supermarket in its ground floor. The Lighthouse is a residential tower block designed by
Lundgaard & Tranberg
Lundgaard & Tranberg Arkitekter is a Danish architectural firm, based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
History
Lundgaard & Tranberg was founded in 1985 by Boje Lundgaard and Lene Tranberg. In the 1990s, the firm gained a reputation as designers of heat ...
and was completed in 2007. Other modern buildings in the area have been designed by
C. F. Møller Architects and
Hvidt & Mølgaard.
Transport
Amerika Plads is located between
Østerport station
The fortifications of Copenhagen underwent a comprehensive modernization and expansion in the 17th century. The project was commenced and was largely the masterplan of Christian IV in the early 17th century but was continued and completed by his s ...
and
Nordhavn station
Nordhavn station is a commuter rail and rapid transit railway station in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The station serves the eastern part of the district of Østerbro, as well as the harbour area of Nordhavn. The station is by the lines A, H, B, C, ...
on the
S-train
The S-Bahn ( , ), , is a hybrid urban rail, urban–suburban rail system serving a metropolitan region predominantly in German language, German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit syst ...
main railway line through Copenhagen.
References
External links
Amerika PladsAmerika Pladson Copenhagen X
{{coord, 55.6997, 12.5941, type:landmark_region:DK, display=title
Squares in Copenhagen
Redevelopment projects in Copenhagen
Relocated buildings and structures in Denmark