Gottlieb Paludan Architects has created a visionary master plan for the listed Odda Smelting Works (Odda Smelteverk) on behalf of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage in Norway (Riksantikvaren).

The 56-hectare site is situated centrally in the town of Odda at the innermost end of Sørfjorden, meaning the Southern Fjord, and surrounded by the spectacular Norwegian landscape of the Hardangervidda mountain plateau. With the development of the smelting works area, Odda has the opportunity to secure the future of the town’s new focal point as a world-class industrial heritage site.

The work is distinctly strategic and follows a ten-year process which has involved a wide range of players, investors and stakeholders since the insolvent liquidation of Odda Smelting Works. Therefore, the objective of the development plan is to establish a common frame of reference for the area, focusing on the urban context, the transitional space, the character and materiality of the area together with the psychological identity of the site, the town, the municipality and the region.

The project includes an assessment of the urban development perspective as the site will integrate with the surrounding town together with a future use and activation of the listed buildings and a constructional assessment of the condition of the buildings. Three scenarios unfold the possibilities of integrating retail shops, cultural offerings and venues together with private and commercial properties in a concentrated, functionally mixed urban environment. The process includes extensive involvement of steering committees and working groups throughout, the objective being to establish a shared understanding of the issues relating to the development of the site, including the potential of the listed buildings to raise Odda’s profile as a destination for tourists seeking cultural heritage and natural beauty.

Work started in December 2013 and was completed with a final report at the end of June 2014.

Visualiseringer: Gottlieb Paludan Architects