At last – AF Bostäder to build Sparta Mini!
A student paradise in the best location – that is how AF Bostäder describes Lund’s beloved student housing area, Sparta. Now that AF Bostäder is to build on the last remaining plot in the ongoing expansion project at Kämnärsrätten, the company has decided to copy Bengt Edman’s masterpiece and construct a new Sparta – in miniature.
“In the concept phase for the final plot at Kämnärsrätten, the winning proposal was to copy Sparta – this paragon of student housing areas,” says Martin Jacobsson, Property Development Manager at AF Bostäder and project manager with a focus on minimalism. “Bengt Edman’s award-winning architecture was marked by a visionary integrity in its purest form, and Sparta Mini will also unite aestheticism with brutalism.”
The descriptions of the architecture may all sound like Greek to you, but the new Sparta Mini will be exactly what it sounds like: a Sparta in miniature, half as big as the original and designed in dark brick, ribbed concrete and brown tile. Extra time and energy have been devoted to the facade – a touchy subject.
“Sparta has always divided Lund into two camps: Those who understand architecture and all the others,” says Martin Jacobsson. “Our position is very clear – everything that is good about Sparta, i.e. everything, will be incorporated in Sparta Mini. We are aware that facades have a tendency to put up barriers and that is why we have engaged, architect Connie Crete so that everyone will be satisfied. The colour itself will be the least of the problems as we still have some green paint left over from the repainting of Sparta.”
The accommodation will be designed as corridor rooms, with communal kitchens and all the attributes of the 1970s. Today’s construction regulations are a lot different compared to back then, but the Planning Committee know their history, understand the nostalgic value and have been very accommodating with exemptions from the building regulations.
“Sparta has always engaged people, all the way from Marathon to Athens. Tage Erlander turned up at the ground-breaking ceremony, and when it was time to cut the ribbon, Olof Palme was holding the scissors, and just the other day State Secretary Feidip Pides came running with a message from the Government Offices: “the Prime Minister will be coming to the inauguration of Sparta Mini and would like to send a greeting: ‘Congratulations, you have triumphed!’,” concludes Martin Jacobsson.