The Freight Yard Project (Godsbanen) Godsbanen is a major political endeavor by the City of Aarhus. It encompasses the transformation of the old freight yard in Aarhus to a Production Center for Stage Arts, Visual Arts, and Literature and the urban renewal of the adjoining rail areas. In the following you will be given a short introduction to the project. For further information you are more than welcome to contact the Administration of Culture in Aarhus. The Cultural Production Center Aarhus has for some years had a vision of creating a Production Center for Stage Arts, Visual Arts, and Literature in the old, closed down freight yard. In 2007 the municipality was finally able to buy the property from the Danish State Railways, thereby officially kick-starting the process of transforming the old industrial area to a new cultural power center. The process was initiated with a series of events, which focused on getting input and feedback from the citizens on how best to accommodate their wishes and needs in the shaping the future of the Produktion Center. Representatives from the educational system, the business community, and the cultural environment were invited to join in the dialogue as well. The result of this dialogue was the crystallization of a number of common ideas on how best to transform the old freight yard buildings to an innovative cultural Production Center. Moreover these ideas went on to form the basis of the subsequent specification of the project. The Production Center for Stage Arts, Visual Arts, and Literature will be a very versatile complex projekt, which will accommodate all the diverse needs within the different art forms. Furthermore, it will advance overarching collaborations between artists and between the field of art and other fields of practice. The Production Center will open March 30th 2012. The Urban Renewal of the Freight Yard Area The establishment of the Cultural Production Center will go hand in hand with the urban renewal of the surrounding rail area. The freight yard area cover a total of 43.000 qm2, and this area will be completely transformed into a new, vibrant district in downtown Aarhus. The freight yard area was constructed in the early 1920´s and at the time the area was situated in the outskirts of Aarhus making it an ideal site for the new freight yard. However, in the meantime the city has grown and absorbed the freight yard area in its midst and therefore the reshaping and rebuilding of this area constitutes a unique opportunity to make not only a new district, but also a new coherence between downtown Aarhus and the surrounding districts. The new district will also play a very vital role in the municipality’s vision of creating an actual Culture Zone in Aarhus. The zone will sweep through the downtown area in an arc creating a coherent flow of cultural sites and institutions. From The Botanical Garden and onwards to The Old Town in the north through Ceres, The City Museum, The Freight Yard, and The Scandinavian Congress Center to Ridehuset, The Music House, and ARoS in the south. The Cultural Production Center will be a natural focal point for the new district, but there will also be room for both public housing and commerce. It will be a diverse district with a strong cultural profile and focus on a rich and active social life.
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