Bo Grönlund: Draft Paper to CEN TC325/W2, September 1998 Denmark: Rødovre, Sibeliusparken This crime prevention case was prepared as part of a European collection Type of area - No. 1 Safety design case - Crime prevention design - Offenders - Guardians - Victims / targets - Evaluation - Further reading / info Type of area Sibeliusparken is a social housing development 8 km west of downtown Copenhagen, in Rødovre. The commune is mainly a suburb from the 1950's with working class and lower middle class population. The housing project took place in a run down industrial area, with the purpose to stimulate the creations of a more mixed urban environment. From the south end of the project there is a short distance to the local town hall, library, cultural 'palace', and a major 'American' type shopping mall. In the housing area itself there are no shops or institutions. From a traffic point of view, Sibeliusparken is a car safe area, with the car traffic and parking organised at the outside edges. This also gives a 'buffer' file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (1 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
zone to the remaining industrial facilities surrounding it, that was a 'must' according to planning regulations. Built in two stages, the first northern one in 1986 and the second southern one in 1994, the total number of dwellings are 265. Its has been important to get a mix of different kinds of dwellings (different sizes, dwellings for young people, families and elderly, etc.). The number of stories are 2 and 3. Besides the dwellings, there are common facilities like laundries, meeting rooms etc. (1200 m2). The administration and maintenance is run from an old villa in the area, by people who also live in the project. The residents are organised in an area council, that takes all major decisions. The household size is 1,8 in average. The proportion of non-westeners that live in the area is only 2 %. 20 % of the women and 12 % of the men in Sibeliusparken are over 67 years old. There are more 20-30 years old than the commune average. 67 % of the households are single or single parents. In/ out migration is about 20% per year. Unemployment is rather high, and higher than average. 21 % live on social security. The average income is only 63% of the commune average. The demographic and social composition would normally indicate some trouble in the area, but this seems not to be the case here. The aerial photograph shows the area from northeast towards southwest. The new part has white roofs. The photo at the bottom shows one of the pedestrian and bicycle streets through the file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (2 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
project. No. 1 Safety design case Sibeliusparken is chosen as an example here, as it is the first housing area in Denmark planned for safety and security through urban design, after the destructive excesses of the modern movement for about 50 years. The area is also unique, because no better design has been carried out later i Denmark, so far, although a few cases are almost as good, e.g. Egebjerg-gård in Ballerup, a housing exhibition area of 1996. Further, Sibeliusparken, got special grants from the Danish Building Development Counsil (BUR), for the development of the design. The Danish Crime Prevention Counsil took part as well. But without the special interest and energy of architect John Allpass, the planner of the area, crime prevention through urban design in Denmark would be less developed. Crime prevention design In John Allpass' BUR report of 1984, the crime prevention design of Sibeliusparken is shown - the design of streets and gates, crossings and squares, front gardens and entrances, private gardens, parking, storage, garbage collection, bicycle parking, green areas, play spaces, allotment gardens, surfaces, pavement, walls, railings and fences, hedges, trees, and common rooms. The clear structuring of the whole area in file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (3 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
public, semi-public, semiprivate and private zones is important, as well as the specific design of real and symbolic barriers. The drawings on this page are all from this report, except the photograph that shows the result. Below: The importance of visibility is stressed - also while sitting down and for small children. Low walls support the population of outdoor spaces. Entrances are often marked with symbolic gates. Right: An interior pedestrian and bicycle street with a small common entrance yard or garden (in black) supporting a bench and other facilities. To the sides are private gardens (in grey). The details of the low gates are well worked out. file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (4 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
Children are supposed to play in or close to the interior streets, - and they do. From the street and the glazed balconies it is easy to overview the space. file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (5 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
Towards the interior street the private gardens and the special front yards to the stairwells have low garden gates of a varied design. Each stairwell also has a common room in the form of a 'greenhouse', and the stairwell is 'see through' at ground level. file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (6 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
In parts of the development there are no stairwells, but outdoor stairs instead. Most often these stairs only serve two apartments, thereby stimulating the personalisation of the space. Bicycle parking is organised in small groups close to the entrance doors, clearly visible from the glazed balconies. Ground floor apartments have private gardens, preferably both in the back and the file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (7 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
front. Allotment gardens contributes to the population of the green areas. A Offenders The offenders are mainly burglars, but not very many. In 1990-93 there were 9 burglaries of dwellings and a few in common facilities. In the same period there were 3 incidents of violence and 1 theft of a car. Bicycle theft happens, but in a limited way. In 10 years the number of vandal and graffiti incidents have been only 5. Because of the location of the area away from larger through streets, railway stations, etc., most of the 'outsiders' that file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (8 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
pass the area, are people from neighbouring areas. Accessibility/possibilities of escape for offenders: Anonymity is relatively low. The number of entrances and escape routes are rather high though (10 or above). B Guardians Presence and number of guardians: informal control from the houses is good many residents use their gardens and the public spaces the staff and maintenance people of the estate are often seen in the area and wear easily recognisable uniforms Visibility: The visibility is generally good, though there are some storage sheds and stairs that obstruct the view, especially along the major east-west street in the northern part of the area. Willingness/ability to react: Reasonably good. Rather low turnover of residents. C Victims / targets The map (above right) shows Sibeliusparken as presented in the SBI file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (9 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
crime prevention investigation in 1996. The map shows the parking lots, the main through paths, and the burglaries during the investigation period. 'St' are location of burglaries at ground level (8 in all), '1' burglaries on the first floor (1 in all). There were no burglaries at higher levels. Most burglaries took place along the most used through path and/or in places with less good overview/lesser number of passers by. The diagram (middle right) shows the number of offences per 1000 dwellings for 4 communes in the Copenhagen Metropolitan Area and 6 selected housing areas. Cross hatches are burglaries, simple hatches are violence, etc., and no hatches are car thefts. As shown, Sibeliusparken have low crime rates. (Source: SBI, 1996). Besides the crime preventive design, it might contribute to the low crime rate, that there, with the exception of rather many elderly people, are no targets of particular interest. One of the reasons for the low car theft rate is probably the good visibility and close distance to the parking lots. The general opinion in the area is that people feel safe, also outdoor at night. file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (10 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
Evaluation Research shows that crime prevention through physical planning and design measures has been effective. Housing areas, like Sibeliusparken that have been planned with crime prevention in mind, have experienced much lower crime rates than other housing areas (about 50%). Car theft in Sibelius-parken is extraordinary low, and burglaries about one fifth of the normal. Investigation confirms that well arranged outer areas, and good overview close to entrances and in gardens, prevents burglaries and vandalism to a relatively high extent. Glazed-in balconies and rooms have an important function here. In Sibeliusparken the visibility is generally good. Nearly all outer areas can be seen without difficulty from the dwellings and along streets and paths. Good management also prevents crime. Rapid repairs of vandalism, contact to residents and participation are of great importance. Above: The second part of the development of Sibeliusparken, with a rather barren entrance balcony. All other pictures are from the first part. John Allpass, the architect/planner of the first part of Sibeliusparken, today regrets that the area isn't even more of a traditional mixed street environment, where building fronts face surrounding file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (11 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33
streets. The second part of Sibeliusparken lacks some of the easy personalisation features of the first part - e.g. there are many more apartments on each balcony. Further reading / info Allpass, John: Om livet i boligområder - udformning af en bebyggelses udearealer, Egegårdskvarteret, Rødovre kommune, BUR, Copenhagen, 1984. (The design program for Sibeliusparken - only in Danish) Christiansen, Ulf, et. al: Forebyggelse af kriminalitet - en undersøgelse af seks boligområder i Københavns omegn, Statens Byggeforskningsinstitut (SBI), 1996. (Prevention of crime - 6 housing areas in the Copenhagen region - with a 4 p. summary in English). The Crime Prevention Counsil: Crime prevention in the planning of housing - security and welfare for residents, Copenhagen 1996. DS recommendation R 470 on technical prevention of violence and vandalism. Photographs by the author DS 471 Technical prevention against Burglar Attack. Danish Journals 'Arkitektur' and 'Arkitekten' file:///d /EDOCA/docs/Sibeliusparken%20Crime%20Prevention,%20Bo%20Grönlund2.htm (12 van 12)3-4-2006 19:14:33