Cities are growing. Housing, workplaces, traffic, shops, everything demands space. But anyone who looks carefully around sees that we often have all that space long ago. We just forget to look up.
In the Danish capital Copenhagen, they did. There, on top of a seemingly ordinary car park, is a surprising place that shows how cleverly you can use scarce space. On the roof of Park'n'Play you won't find a bare concrete plain, but a vibrant sports and play park.
What once began as a purely functional parking building has become a green, social and sporting meeting place for the Nordhavn district. A district that, like many other districts worldwide, is struggling with lack of space, densification and the desire for healthy and green living.
Park'n'Play proves that a roof does not have to be the end of a building, but the beginning of new space for health, movement and connection.
Finding space where it remains unused
Copenhagen is known as a progressive city in terms of sustainable urban development. The former industrial port district Nordhavn is being transformed step by step into a modern, liveable city district with a strong focus on sustainability, health and quality of life. But as in any city, space is scarce.
Building parking facilities is inevitable in a growing urban district. But architecture firm JAJA Architects saw in Nordhavn's parking garage not only a necessary facility, but also an opportunity. On top of a car park, why not give something back to the neighbourhood? Why not use that roof for what the city really needs: space to move, play, meet and relax?
Thus was born the idea for Park'n'Play, a design that proves how rooftops can contribute to a healthy and social city....
Vfrom parking to moving and meeting
At first glance, Park'n'Play looks like an ordinary car park. Until you see the bright red staircase. It winds invitingly up along the facade, inviting residents and visitors to the roof. There, at height, a green, sporty world unfolds in the middle of the city.
What can you find on the roof? ✔ Play equipment and climbing frames for children ✔ Fitness and exercise equipment for adults ✔ Green areas with planting and natural resting places ✔ Benches and picnic areas for meeting places ✔ Views over the harbour, the city and the Nordhavn district
The combination of play, exercise, greenery and views makes the roof an attractive and lively place for young and old.
"Park downstairs, meet and move upstairs. It can be that simple."
More than just winning space
Park'n'Play is not just smart use of space, it has a wider social value. The project shows how rooftops: ✔ Contribute to residents' health by making exercise approachable ✔ Strengthen social connection by providing space for meeting and relaxation ✔ Encourage greening of the city, with positive effects on climate adaptation and biodiversity ✔ Raise awareness about the potential of roofs ✔ Add aesthetic value to what was otherwise an anonymous car park
But Park'n'Play goes further. The programming turns the roof into a real meeting place for the neighbourhood. Every day (from 07:00 to 22:00), residents are free to play sports, games or exercise there. On weekends, organised activities are offered, including crossfit sessions, sprint and obstacle runs, panna football and even group fitness with TRX training and box jumps. The roof is not only beautifully designed, it is alive. A place that is always inviting to meet and actively exercise.
Moreover, the project fits seamlessly into Copenhagen's broader vision, which is committed to compact, liveable and sustainable urban development. To this end, roofs are not residual space, but opportunity space.
What can we learn from this?
In the Netherlands too, countless square metres of flat roofs lie unused. On business parks, car parks, sports halls, schools and distribution centres. We often see these roofs purely as functional, or leave them completely unused.
Park'n'Play shows that things can be done differently. That roofs can provide space for what the city desperately needs: sports, exercise, greenery, encounters. Not as expensive prestige projects, but as smart, socially responsible interventions in the existing urban space.
Imagine:
- Car parks with rooftop sports and play facilities
- Company roofs that provide space for vitality and relaxation
- Hospital roofs serving as rest and exercise areas
- School roofs used for sports, games and education
- Sports halls or shopping centres with roofs full of sports and greenery
The examples already exist. So does the space. The question is: do we dare to look differently?
From grey to green, from functional to social
Park'n'Play shows that a parking building does not have to be anonymous and grey, but can actually add something to the city. That through smart design you not only gain space, but also create health, social connection and quality of life.
In Copenhagen, the roof of a parking garage has literally and figuratively taken on a new function. On top of daily mobility, a place has been created where the city moves, meets and grows.
And the best part? We already had that space. All we had to do was look up.