Hillerød Library and Information Park
Location: Hillerød, Denmark
Client: Municipality of Hillerød
Team: Stig L. Andersson, Hans Kragh
Design phase: 1999-2000
Construction: 2001
Area: 6.900 m2
Cost of construction: 3 mill. €
The library and its surroundings received the Accessibility Prize 2001 from the Ministry of Culture.
Other culture institutions and schools by SLA
In Hillerød the disused slaughterhouse has been reconstructed to form part of a new culture centre in the town. The first stage is the library and information park. The requirements for the outdoor spaces were a public square, a park and spatial connection between the inner and outer spaces of the library.
The site is treated as a surface that rises towards the south and falls towards the north. The surface is delineated towards the south by a curve that follows the buildings, whilst a horizontal wall of boulders forms the boundary of the square in the west. The surface is laid with black clinkers broken by patches of boulders, water or planting with i.a. wild roses, grasses and magnolias.
Individually placed maples will in time create an overhanging leafy canopy in the space. Towards the east the space is bordered by a horizontal row of existing poplar. Grass is used as surfacing, and in the grass are five large free-floating ellipsoid gardens that are embedded into the sloping surface. Each garden has its own character with surfacing of e.g. white marble chippings and pine trees or red tennis gravel, water basins and robinia trees.
