Høje-Taastrup
Encyclopedia
Danish language
Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
, kommune
Municipalities of Denmark
This is a list of Municipalities of Denmark.-Region Hovedstaden:* Albertslund Municipality* Allerød Municipality* Ballerup Municipality* Bornholm Regional Municipality* Brøndby Municipality* Copenhagen Municipality* Dragør Municipality* Egedal Municipality...
) in Region Hovedstaden
Region Hovedstaden
The Capital Region of Denmark is an administrative region of Denmark established on January 1, 2007 as part of the 2007 Danish Municipal Reform, which replaced the traditional counties with five larger regions. At the same time, smaller municipalities were merged into larger units, cutting the...
on the island of Zealand (Sjælland) in eastern Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. The municipality covers an area of 78 km² (30 mi²), and has a total population of 47,158 (2008). Its mayor is Michael Ziegler, a member of the Conservative People's Party
Conservative People's Party (Denmark)
The Conservative People's Party , also known as Conservatives is a Danish political party.-History:The party was founded 1915 based mostly on its predecessor, Højre , but also on the Free Conservatives and a moderate faction of Venstre , the liberals.The party has participated in several coalition...
(Det Konservative Folkeparti) political party
Politics of Denmark
The Politics of Denmark takes place in a framework of a parliamentary, representative democratic, constitutional monarchy, in which the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a multi-party system...
.
The main town and the site of its municipal council is the town of Taastrup
Taastrup
Taastrup is a Danish satellite-city of Copenhagen and the administrative seat of Høje-Taastrup Municipality, Region Hovedstaden. The population in 2011 is 32,406 .-Geography:...
. Other towns in the municipality include Høje Taastrup (without hyphenation), Hedehusene
Hedehusene
Hedehusene, a railway town in Denmark, lies between Copenhagen and Roskilde. The town started its slow development in 1847, when the railway between Copenhagen and Roskilde was finished....
, Fløng
Fløng
Fløng is a small town in Denmark located on Zealand, situated between Copenhagen and Roskilde. The city has approximately 4,000 inhabitants....
, Sengeløse, Vridsløsemagle and Reerslev.
Neighboring municipalities are Albertslund
Albertslund
Albertslund Kommune is a municipality in Region Hovedstaden on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 23 km², and has a total population of 27,602 . Its mayor is Steen Christiansen, a member of the Social Democrats political party...
and Vallensbæk
Vallensbæk
Vallensbæk Kommune is a municipality in Region Hovedstaden on the east coast of the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark.-Overview:The municipality covers an area of 9.15 km², and has a total population of 12,399...
to the east, Ledøje-Smørum
Ledøje-Smørum
Until January 1, 2007 Ledøje-Smørum was a municipality in Copenhagen County on Zealand island in eastern Denmark, then merged into Egedal...
and Gundsø
Gundsø
Gundsø was a municipality in Roskilde county on the island of Zealand in east Denmark. 1 January 2007 the municipality of Gundsø merged with the municipality of Roskilde and the municipality of Ramsø as a result of the structural reform. The area of Gundsø municipality was 64 km², with a...
to the north, Roskilde
Roskilde municipality
Roskilde municipality is a municipality in Region Sjælland, 30 km west of Copenhagen on the island of Zealand in east Denmark....
to the west, and Greve
Greve municipality
Greve Municipality is a municipality about 21 km south-west of Copenhagen in Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 60 km², and has a total population of 47,773...
and Ishøj
Ishøj
Ishøj Municipality is a municipality in Region Hovedstaden on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark. The municipality covers 26 km², with a total population of 20,687 , many of whom are Pakistani, African, Arab, or Turkish immigrants...
to the south. The Holbæk Motorway and the West Forest (Vestskoven) help define the municipality's eastern perimeter.
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
through Roskilde to Holbæk
Holbæk
Holbæk is a town in Denmark and the seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 27,055 . The city is located in the northeastern part of Region Sjælland, Denmark....
; it extends all the way to the tip of Sjællands Odde, a peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
sticking out into the Kattegat
Kattegat
The Kattegat , or Kattegatt is a sea area bounded by the Jutland peninsula and the Straits islands of Denmark on the west and south, and the provinces of Västergötland, Scania, Halland and Bohuslän in Sweden on the east. The Baltic Sea drains into the Kattegat through the Øresund and the Danish...
where a ferry connects to Denmark's mainland (the Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
peninsula) at the town of Ebeltoft
Ebeltoft
Ebeltoft is a town with a population of 7,559 on the central east coast of Denmark, located in Syddjurs municipality in Region Midtjylland on the Danish peninsula of Jutland....
. Additionally Motorring 4 splits off from the Holbæk Motorway at the municipality's eastern border leading to the various motorways servicing the northern parts of Zealand. The municipality's good position in the traffic network has led to the development of Høje-Taastrup Transportation Center, which includes Carlsberg Brewery's huge bottle depot.
The West Forest is located where the three municipalities of Høje-Taastrup, Albertslund, and Ledøje-Smørum border on one another. It is part of a system of green areas surrounding the Copenhagen metropolitan area. It offers an extensive system of hiking and bike trails through grass and marsh areas. It connects to other parts of the greenway system, allowing one to seamlessly make a tour around the metropolitan area.
Another throughway in this municipality is historic Roskilde Way (Roskildevej), which runs from Copenhagen to Roskilde. The first major road connecting these two cities was built in 1642 by King Christian IV
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
. It was called The King's Road (Kongevejen), and was replaced in the 18th century by the current roadway. At Hedehusene, one of the towns in the municipality, the road changes name to Copenhagen Way (Københansvej), i.e. the road leading from Roskilde to Copenhagen. The Holbæk Motorway runs into, and has replaced part of the old Roskilde Way.
Road signs indicating that one is leaving the Copenhagen metropolitan area are mounted within the municipality, where the suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
an residential area gives way to the countryside, and the more agricultural side of the municipality.
Høje-Taastrup municipality was not merged with other municipalities on January 1, 2007 as the result of nationwide Kommunalreformen ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007).
The three railway station towns
Greater Copenhagen Authority
The Greater Copenhagen Authority was a politically-governed organisation deciding regional development plans for the Metropolitan Copenhagen area, Denmark...
(Hovedstadens Udviklingsråd (HUR)). The station at Høje Taastrup is one of the largest in Denmark and offers excellent local (Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
-area), regional (including Roskilde
Roskilde
Roskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age and is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network....
, Holbæk
Holbæk
Holbæk is a town in Denmark and the seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 27,055 . The city is located in the northeastern part of Region Sjælland, Denmark....
and Kalundborg
Kalundborg
Kalundborg is a city with a population of 16,434 in Kalundborg municipality in Denmark and the site of its municipal council. Kalundborg is on the main island Zealand, with Copenhagen, but opposite on the far western edge....
), and national and even international train connections (for example, to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany).
Høje Taastrup
The town of Høje Taastrup is a new development, centered on the train stationHøje Taastrup station
Høje Taastrup station is a railway station in Høje-Taastrup municipality, Denmark, opened on 30 May 1986.The station is one of the largest in Denmark...
. Behind the town hall lies the old village of Høje Taastrup, with its typical country church, picturesque thatch-roofed buildings, and a village pond complete with duck houses. It is a reminder of the area's agricultural past. The farmland that used to lie in the vicinity of the old village has been pretty much developed as of 2005.
Bjørn Nørgaard
Bjørn Nørgaard is a Danish artist who has been active in a variety of fields. He has significantly influenced the art scene in Denmark both through his "happenings" and his sculptures in Danish cities...
, and was inaugurated on December 4, 1986. There are several unique buildings in the same area, including the train station itself with its distinctive three arches. The three arches have become a symbol of the municipality, and have given rise to the moniker "The City of Arches" (Danish: Buernes By, which in a play on words
Pun
The pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use and abuse of homophonic,...
sounds remarkably similar to the phrase Byernes By or "The City of Cities").
The city has a sizeable number of immigrants, mostly from Vietnam and Arab countries.
The town is home to City 2 shopping center, Denmark's second largest shopping center or mall.
Taastrup
The neighboring town of Taastrup lies to the east of Høje Taastrup, and has the municipality's prime shopping street on Køgevej (Køge Road), now Taastrup hovedgade. The street was extensively renovated in the past few years, and provides a traditional, Danish outdoors shopping environment. Some of the shops is Matas,cafe mango,a comic shop,pizza parlors,barbers,Grocery stores and jewelry stores.Taastrupis divided into Blåkilde,Taastrup gård,Taastrup main street and Højgårdstoften. Taastrup has a little outdoor area with a McDonald's, furniture store, Adidas store, bed store and a Toys "R" Us.
The infamous housing project of Tåstrupgård (lit; English. Taastrup Farm) is located in Taastrup. The area has been known through a series of shootings the last couple of years.
Hedehusene
Hedehusene lies to the west of Høje Taastrup, on the stretch of railway connecting Copenhagen-Høje Taastrup-Roskilde. The town got its name with the building of the King's Road leading to Roskilde. King Christian IV wanted a house built for an official who would keep watch over entry gates on the road. This became the first house on the heathHeath (habitat)
A heath or heathland is a dwarf-shrub habitat found on mainly low quality acidic soils, characterised by open, low growing woody vegetation, often dominated by plants of the Ericaceae. There are some clear differences between heath and moorland...
(Danish: hede) or Danish prairie. Thus the town became Hedehusene (lit. "The houses on the heath")
Today the town has grown physically into neighboring Kallerup, Fløng, and Baldersbrønde. The most important commercial area is Roskilde Street (Roskildevej). Rockwool International, immediately west of the town, is the largest employer.
Hedeland, close by, is a unique nature area created at the site of a former gravel excavation area. It also features a 4,000 seat amphitheatre.
One of Denmark's oldest runestones, the Kallerup Stone
Kallerup Stone
thumb|250px|right|The Kallerup Stone is located in Hedehusene, Denmark.The Kallerup Stone, designated as runic inscription DR 250 in the Rundata system, is a memorial runestone which is located in Hedehusene, Høje-Taastrup Municipality, on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark...
(Kallerupstenen) from ca. 800-825 is erected at Ansgarkirken.
There are between 1000-1500 immigrants, the vast majority coming from Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(Sivas and Konya
Konya
Konya is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. The metropolitan area in the entire Konya Province had a population of 1,036,027 as of 2010, making the city seventh most populous in Turkey.-Etymology:...
). And there are small groups from Pakistan, Bosnia Herzegovina, Iran and Iraq.
Attractions
- The Ole Rømer museum in Vridsløsemagle is dedicated to the work of the Danish astronomer, Ole Rømer (1644–1710), who built his observatory here. The observatory operated until about 1716 when the remaining instruments were moved to the RundetårnRundetårnThe Rundetårn is a 17th-century tower located in central Copenhagen, Denmark. One of the many architectural projects of Christian IV, it was built as an astronomical observatory...
(lit. the "Round Tower") in Copenhagen. There is a large collection of ancient and more recent astronomical instruments on display at the museum. - Reerslev ChurchReerslev ChurchReerslev Church lies in the village of Reerslev, adjacent to Høje-Taastrup near Roskilde in Denmark. It has a number of interesting frescos or kalkmalerier painted by artists from the Isefjord school.-History:...
- City 2
- Taastrup main street
- Taastrup water tower