Keflavík Airport Area Strategic Masterplan @ Iceland

Artist impression: The Keflavík Airport Area Strategic Masterplan is focused on the development and planning of a 55-square-kilometre area surrounding Iceland’s global aviation hub.

(Source: KCAP)

KEFLAVÍK AIRPORT AREA STRATEGIC MASTERPLAN

KCAP Architects & Planners (KCAP), a leading international Dutch design firm specialising in architecture, urbanism and landscape design, has won an international competition to design the Keflavík Airport Area Strategic Masterplan in Iceland. The Keflavík International Airport is a wellconnected international airport and can serve as a driver for an economically, environmentally and socially sustainable area. The location between Europe and North America, the proximity to the capital area, as well as the dynamic municipalities in Reykjanes, are qualities that play an important role in the development of the area. The Keflavík Airport Area Strategic Masterplan is focused on the development and planning of a 55-square-kilometre area surrounding the Keflavík International Airport, Iceland’s global aviation hub. The plan will serve as both a framework for the area’s long-term development (until 2050) and as a springboard for individual projects in the near term (until 2030). Emphasis is placed on sustainable development and planning of the area that will mutually benefit the airport and surrounding communities, as well as the national economy. The current focus is on the development of areas that will strengthen the connections between the airport and the Helguvík harbour site, the neighbouring municipalities and the capital area with Keflavik Airport.

Led by KCAP, the multidisciplinary team includes WSP, Felixx, MIC Mobility in Chain, VSO Consulting, Buck Consultants International, Buro Happold, Base Design, Maurits Schaafsma, Amberg Loglay and Kanon Arkitektar.

Organised by the Keflavík Airport Development Company (Kadeco), Kadeco’s CEO Pálmi Freyr Randversson praised the

The current focus of the Masterplan is on the development of areas that will strengthen the connections between the airport and the Helguvík harbour site, the neighbouring municipalities and the capital area with Keflavik Airport.

(Source: KCAP)

winning proposal as “a crucial step to realising our future vision for the airport area. I’m thrilled to partner with Team KCAP on this project of national importance.”

The masterplan aims to transform strategic locations in the airport area into a showcase for the country’s ambitious economic development and sustainability strategies. It was this approach – together with the proposal for collaborative development between public and private sectors – that earned the team the first prize.

KCAP’s masterplan aims to elevate Keflavík’s strategic position between Europe and North America, with its plentiful supply of renewable energy, and the captivating landscape of the Reykjanes UNESCO Geopark.

By setting a path for long-term sustainable development, the masterplan is intended to act as a catalyst to innovate the Icelandic economy. Meanwhile, for mutual benefit, the masterplan seeks to enhance the relationship between the airport and local communities of Reykjanesbær and Suðurnesjabær to be able to grow together.

“With that in mind, Team KCAP’s proposal emphasises projects that have a strong local ownership and respond to existing needs,” said the KCAP team.

The team’s strategy is based on identifying catalyst sites that can achieve a high impact in terms of identity and value creation. While the focus on the Masterplan is framed around a polycentric urban archipelago, the sites are planned to be connected by the landscape of the Airport Corridor.

Through the connections of landscape, these areas are aimed to contribute to climate action plans and are intended to play a fundamental role as the ‘identity carrier’ for the airport area.

“Tapping into the government’s climate action plan that identifies reforestation as a top priority, the landscape concept connects the Airport Corridor into a national network of reforestation projects,” said the KCAP team.

“A future-oriented mobility vision comprising the KeflavíkReykjavík Link (BRT), local public transport and active mobility linkages connects the airport area’s urban nodes for travellers, workers and inhabitants alike.”

The design team added that different development strategies have been assigned to the catalyst sites, from greenfield interventions to the transformation and densification of existing built areas; carefully phased timelines allow for the different areas to be developed simultaneously and incrementally, according to market demand.

The catalyst sites facilitate diversification into new sectors such as the production of green hydrogen, electric aviation, hitech agriculture, and marine aquaculture. Keflavík Airport Area will attract new high-value companies and create opportunities

Tapping into the government’s climate action plan that identifies reforestation as a top priority, the landscape concept connects the Airport Corridor into a national network of reforestation projects.

The Keflavík Airport Area Strategic Masterplan integrates an ambitious economic development concept in terms of sustainable urban design, landscape, and mobility strategies.

(Source: KCAP)

A future-oriented mobility vision comprising the Keflavík-Reykjavík Link (BRT), local public transport and active mobility linkages connects the airport area’s urban nodes for travellers, workers and inhabitants alike. (Source: KCAP)

To transform the Masterplan Framework for Keflavík Airport Area into reality, the multidisciplinary team developed a cohesive yet incremental strategy for the catalyst sites. for a diverse workforce; the economic strategy will deepen the talent pool for innovative sectors by attracting international experts as well as improving educational opportunities for the local population. This is based on the team’s belief that knowledge and skills acquired overseas can be brought back to benefit the Icelandic economy, and that investment in economic development should also target the development of the labour force.

To transform the Masterplan Framework for Keflavík Airport Area into reality, the multidisciplinary team developed a cohesive yet incremental strategy for the catalyst sites. “A project of such significance requires a bold and at the same time sensitive approach. A step-by-step roadmap will provide investors with a trajectory that responds to the possibilities, to the market, to the culture of development and to the stakeholder landscape over time. This gradual approach should also apply to stakeholder relations, which need to be developed with great care to create a resilient and ambitious organisation,” says Anouk Kuitenbrouwer, partner in charge at KCAP. Positioning Kadeco (the client) as a forward-looking collaborative partner, capable of realising a vision for change, is vital for the future of the project.