Kiruna
What would you do if you saw a building rolling down the road?
Welcome to Kiruna – Sweden’s northernmost town, now famous for literally being on the move.
Generations of iron ore mining have reshaped the land beneath the city. To make mining more sustainable — while protecting both people and infrastructure — Sweden has undertaken the extraordinary task of relocating an entire city.
It is one of the world’s most ambitious urban transformation projects – a bold mix of innovation, care, and forward-thinking planning 🇸🇪.
From Wikipedia
Moving the Town
The re-development of Kiruna is a reconstruction project, as the Kirunavaara mine, run by LKAB, undermines the existing town centre. Several buildings are to be moved or demolished. The town center is to be moved 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) to the east.[29]
In 2004, it was decided that the present centre of the municipality would have to be relocated to counter mining-related subsidence.[30] The relocation was to be made gradually over the coming decade. On January 8, 2007, a new location was proposed, northwest to the foot of the Luossavaara mountain, by the lake of Luossajärvi.[31]
The first actual work on moving the town was done in November 2007, when work on the new main sewage pipe started.[32]
In the same week, the first sketches for the layout of the new part of the town became available.[33] The sketches include a travel centre, the new locations for the city hall and the church, an artificial lake, and an extension of the Luossavaara hill into the city.[34] The location of the new section of the E10 was still uncertain, as was the location of the railway and the railway station. A more official sketch was published early in spring 2008, which was then discussed with various interest groups before a further version was to be produced.
In June 2010, the municipal council decided that the town would be moved eastwards (to 67°51′1″N 20°18′2″E), in the direction of Tuolluvaara, instead of the proposed northwestern location.[35] The moving of the town was started in 2014, and the plan describes a process that continues to 2100.[36] In the years 2012-2013, an international architectural competition concerning the vision, strategy, and design of a new city centre for a new Kiruna was arranged by the Municipality of Kiruna in partnership with the Swedish Association of Architects. White Arkitekter AB, based in Gothenburg, together with Ghilardi + Hellsten Arkitekter, based in Oslo, Spacescape AB, Vectura Consulting AB, and Evidens BLW AB, won the competition with their masterplan and strategy for moving the city. The competition team was led by White Arkitekter AB, lead architect Mikael Stenqvist, SAR/MSA, in collaboration with Ghilardi + Hellsten Arkitekter, lead architect Ellen Hellsten.[37] Together with researchers from Luleå and Delft universities, it envisages a denser city centre with a greater focus on sustainability, green and blue infrastructure, pedestrians, and public transport rather than automobiles.[38] In 2018, the Swedish government announced that it would help arrange replacement work for radio corporation Radiotjänst after the city had been moved from its original location.[39]
Starting in 2013, Danish explorer and photographer Klaus Thymann began a long-term project documenting the resettlement of the town. Using GPS-tagged imagery, he has returned multiple times since, replicating precise locations to show the changing landscape.[40] In 2017 Thymann returned again to Kiruna to document the redevelopment of the town for Bloomberg Businessweek.[41]
In August 2025, Kiruna Church was relocated towards the new centere as part of the LKAB town move.[42] The 113-year-old building is protected by the Sweden Cultural Heritage Act and was transported in whole to prevent damage.
✅ 1990s–2000s → Digital & Knowledge Cities
✅ 2000s → Sustainable & Green Cities
✅ 2010s → Smart & Resilient Cities
✅ Mid-2010s → Human-Centered focus
✅ Late 2010s–2020s → Healthy & 15-Minute Cities
✅ 2020s–Future → Responsive, Regenerative, AI-Driven
Cities are constantly evolving — from being digitally connected, to sustainable and resilient, to people-centered and health-focused. Now, we are moving toward cities that are responsive, regenerative, and AI-driven.
Which of these concepts do you think will shape the next decade of urban life?