Trädgårdsstaden - en hotad kulturmiljö? En undersökning av tillbyggnader och dess påverkan i trädgårdsstadsområdena Smedslätten, Ålsten och Äppelviken

Abstract

In the following paper I study the laws and guidelines wich control the addition of small houses in Garden cities in Sweden with focus on the residential district Smedslätten, Ålsten and Äppelviken in Stockholm. Garden cities, which generally have high cultural values and environmental qualities, risk to lose its original character, through to the increasing number of building additions and its questionable design. The Swedish garden city can be summarized as a cohesive settlement, moderate density, small scale and varied expressions in streetscapes and facades. The buildings that subordinates the terrain and surrounding nature, the presence of trees and greenery and the importance of the own garden with ability to self cultivation, were among the main ingredients of garden cities wich were planned in Sweden in the beginning of the 1900s. The high development pressure and the contemporary human need for greater living space has resulted in a growing number of addition buildings in these areas. My study shows that laws and protection, with regard to additions in the garden city areas Smedslätten, Ålsten and Äppelviken, is rather weak and many additions have been raised of varied results. Although there is general advice and guidelines to lean towards how an addition should be designed, these are too general and provide a large margin of interpretation. Most of the houses in Smedslätten, Ålsten and Äppelviken have, due to the addition, lost much of its original character, which ultimately also affect the nature and the cultural value of the areas.