Ørestad | |
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Neighborhood of Copenhagen | |
Developing skyline of Ørestad
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Country | Denmark |
Region | Capital Region |
Municipality | Copenhagen |
District | Amager Vest |
Area | |
• Total | 3.1 km2 (1.2 sq mi) |
Population (2012) | |
• Total | 7,445 |
• Density | 2,401.6/km2 (6,220/sq mi) |
Website | Ørestad |
Ørestad (Danish pronunciation: [ˈøːɐsd̥að]) is a developing city area in Copenhagen, Denmark, on the island of Amager. When the areas was planned it was expected that 20,000 people would live in Ørestad, 20,000 would study, and 80,000 people would be employed in the area. However, so far the area has failed to attract even half of those numbers. The area is being developed using the new town concept with the Copenhagen Metro as the primary public transport grid, connecting the area with the rest of Metropolitan Copenhagen.
Ørestad is noted for its attractive location and excellent infrastructure, which apart from the metro includes the Oresund Railway and Copenhagen Airport, as well as the nearby Øresund Bridge. The regional Oresundtrains reach Copenhagen Airport in six minutes, Copenhagen Central Station in seven, and 29 minutes to Central Station in Malmö, Sweden's third largest city. Ørestad has once been referred to as "the largest crossroad in Scandinavia". However, Ørestad has also been criticized heavily for its modernist planning approach, focusing exclusively on real estate development and infrastructure connections. This has resulted in wide, open spaces that are void of any human life. The plans for the area have been remade several times to account for such mistakes, but so far without much success.
Ørestad is divided into four districts: Ørestad Nord, Amager Fælled kvarteret, Ørestad City and Ørestad Syd. Among the most notable institutions located in Ørestad are the DR Village, the headquarters of the national Danish broadcaster DR, Copenhagen Concert Hall designed by Jean Nouvel, Field's, the largest shopping mall in Denmark, and Bella Center, the largest exhibition and conference center in Scandinavia, with Bella Sky Hotel, the largest hotel in Scandinavia.