Råda torg (i.e. square) marks the center of Mölnlycke, a small town on the outskirts of Gothenburg.

The project was divided into two stages. The first task was to renovate the public square. The area outside the Town Hall was designed as an open and inviting urban space. Peripheral spaces between new office and apartment blocks provide a wonderful backdrop to the square with more intimate, calmer and greener experiences.

The long zig-zag benches, designed by MARELD, provide a human scale on the transition between square and surroundings. The playful shape of the benches welcomes different users and uses.

The square’s surface water has been led to raingardens and the vegetation is chosen to suit the changing levels of soil moisture.

The second stage of the project focused on the connection between the square and an existing Public School. The goal was to continue the soft and flexible park-like landscape all the way to the school entrance. New vegetation follows the same principle of creating a soft, lush buffer towards the offices and apartments, with the exception that the choice of species changes gradually from ornamental plants on the square to mainly edible ones near the school.

Data

Project name: Råda Torg
Landscape Architect: Mareld
Project homepage: https://www.mareldlandskap.se/project/rada-torg/
Project location: Härryda, Sweden
Design year: 2014-2016
Year Built: 2017
Manufacturer of playground equipment: Play sculptures by Monica Gora

Photos: Krister Engström, Ulf Celander