From shellfish to padel

Repurpose of temporary market hall to Östermalmshallen Padel 

published in sb magazine 5/2024 

In one of the biggest upcycling projects in Sweden, the temporary market hall from Stockholm (Östermalmshallen) was given a new lease on life. The building was disassembled and shipped to Mölnlycke, and rebuilt as a padel hall. Since then, padel courts have replaced the fish and shellfish counters, but the exclusive feel remains intact. The wood-panelled walls with a visible structure create that sense of exclusivity, for a result that is far from the standard tin boxes that house many padel halls around Sweden. The locker room floors and walls are lined with big, beautiful terrazzo tiles, while the restaurant and bar offer views of both the lake and the padel courts.

Over the course of a four-year renovation of the 1888-built Östermalm Market Hall, the market traders were moved to a temporary hall out on the square. The largely pre-fabricated building, designed by Tengbom to be easily assembled and disassembled, was constructed with a frame made of glulam columns and veneer beams, as a lightweight construction was necessary due to the underground station below the square. Passers-by and visitors alike could still cross the levels of the square on the market hall’s sloping floors.

Like the older market hall, the temporary hall is notable for its visible construction of slim columns and beams, spaciousness, and good distribution of natural daylight. The building’s columns were designed with a cross-shaped section to be placed at the intersection of criss-crossing beams, with some of the ceiling modules split diagonally by triangular skylight lanterns.