Stage one, multi-use auditorium. 12,000 seats.

View from plaza.

The building is very energy efficient thanks to a compact form factor, high performance envelope, designed with virtually no cold bridges, a hybrid ventilation system, mobile sun screens, and an innovative energy system alternating between hydro- solar- and geothermal power depending on what is best for the city as a whole.

Sara Culture Centre strives for carbon neutrality first and foremost by reducing emissions at all stages of the building’s lifespan.

The idea of the culture centre originated in workshops with local citizens on how to make the city centre more attractive and reverse a trend of declining population.

The mixed-use programme has called for a range of innovative solutions in mass timber construction to handle spans, flexibility, acoustics, and overall statics.

Lead architects (l-r): Robert Schmitz and Oskar Norelius of White arkitekter, Stockholm, Sweden.

The timber structure in the building comes from sustainable forests, located within a 130km radius from the building site.