However, despite this, some streets and courtyards still get very little daylight. This means that daylight is distributed more evenly within the streets than it would be in a network of roads aligned rigidly with the points of the compass. The layout of streets in the district is certainly advantageous for good lighting: the grid pattern is angled at about 60 degrees to the four points of the compass. The ground floor levels along some of the wider streets are used intensively by shops, cafes and restaurants, which also enliven the pavements in the summer with their outside tables. Typically they have 5½ storeys and often contain tworoom apartments with a surface area of less than 60 square metres. Most of the buildings here were erected around 1900 as speculative rental development by investors. In this district, the floor area ratios range from 2.0 to 4.5, depending on the property. The reason for this is that relatively affordable living space is still to be had here. And the population levels are still increasing, as what was once a working-class area is becoming more and more popular, in particular with students and young families. Nørrebro is the most densely-populated urban district in Denmark and also has the least green area per person. The findings of the study are therefore not only applicable to the city of Copenhagen, but to many cities across Northern Europe. The district between Stefansgade and Jagtvej in the Copenhagen district of Nørrebro is, in some ways, extreme, but also typical of many tightly-built residential areas in the city centres of Scandinavia. TIGHTLY-PACKED, MULTIFACETED AND POPULAR: NØRREBRO, COPENHAGEN’S FORMER WORKING-CLASS NEIGHBOURHOODīefore we concentrate on the results of the study, it is worth taking a look at the area that ‘What about Daylight?’ investigates. In order to ensure that an intervention has maximum benefit, all three scales should therefore be considered in a holistic design strategy.” “Furthermore,” says Signe Kongebro, “an important message of our study is that the effects of interventions at all three scales – the city, the building block and the apartment – add up. But these too are important, because they provide a lasting basis for smaller-scale interventions to take place. The most complex and long-term conversion strategies are those encompassing entire districts. These three assessment levels also represent three time frames: while refurbishment measures for an individual apartment can be planned and implemented within a relatively short time, strategies for an entire city district take longer to carry out because they involve more people and a large number of buildings. They also suggest a practical refurbishment strategy that can be applied at three levels: for an entire residential area, for a single apartment block and for individual apartments. Using design creativity and modern simulation tools, the authors investigated what the benefits of daylight renovation are for everyday life on the streets and in public spaces, as well as for residents’ comfort levels and year-end energy bills. The study was funded by the Danish association, Realdania. The potential and possibilities of holistic ‘daylight refurbishment’ of cities and buildings have now been summarised in the study Hvad med Dagslys? (What about daylight?) [See It was compiled by a group of seven architects from the Danish firm, Henning Larsen Architects, in collaboration with Peter Andreas Sattrup (Technical University of Denmark) and Charlotte Algreen (Algreen Arkitekter). Yet how to implement such an approach in practice? It seems only logical, therefore, to make daylight the starting point of any building refurbishment. What is more, improving the daylight situation is one of the few measures that is effective at all scales of architecture – from a whole residential area to an individual room. Even the market value of a property can be increased by a good supply of daylight. The light of the sun contributes to human well-being and is an important source of energy for a building. How can an approach of this kind be systematised? What new potential and synergies are created when we make daylight our starting point for the redevelopment of a building or district? A team of Danish architects has answered these questions in the recently published study ‘Hvad med Dagslys?’ (What about Daylight?). By Jakob Schoof, Photography by Torben Eskerodĭaylight should always be considered when converting buildings.
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