Helsingborg: Portable parks as a flexible solution to green the city
The Challenge
A flexible approach for building the sustainable city
Helsingborg has ambitious plans to transform into a more sustainable city that is also both a liveable and an attractive place for its residents. To do so quickly and cost-efficiently, Helsingborg has been testing flexible solutions to create resilience for the sometimes unknown needs of the citizens. By integrating "new learning as we go," the city gathers citizen input at an early stage before (expensive) permanent decisions are made.
The Solution
Enhancing urban greenery by nurturing trees in a portable park
One of these flexible solutions has been to create a temporary urban park by building a plant nursery in the middle of the city.
Making an impact
Since autumn 2021, three hundred trees have been placed in red wooden stands in eighteen different locations in the centre of Helsingborg, most of them in squares and central avenues to fill in the gaps left by horse chestnuts previously removed due to chestnut haemophilia.
The city took an innovative approach by purchasing trees that were around 10 years old and already five to seven metres tall, and letting them continue their growth in the urban environment instead of a nursery. The varieties of hardy trees include berry elm, mountain cherry, ornamental cherry, pagoda tree and freeman maple, all of which are well-suited for urban environments.
This "Portable Park" project added greenery in public spaces in the city centre that otherwise would have no trees. In addition to promoting a better climate and richer biodiversity, the people of Helsingborg enjoyed the greenery and the beautiful seasonal variations.
The project continues
By spring 2023, all of the trees in the portable park have been planted permanently in more than sixty different locations in Helsingborg. It was crucial at an early stage to involve residents as well as relevant companies and organisations to help set the objectives of the project and locate suitable areas for the trees.
Lessons learnt
It is important to start early and find the right locations in the city, as well as to set common objectives and collaborate with suitable private and public organisations.