Brøndby Kommune has begun a large redevelopment of Brøndby Strand Centrum, which is planned to become an open shopping and café district with 2,500 new apartments.
The municipality has just started the transformation of the area on Copenhagen’s Vestegn, DR reports. The existing center is to be replaced by a more open area with shops and cafés. Brøndby Kommune expects the finished project to house 7,000 residents in 2,500 new apartments.
According to DR, the project has been on the drawing board for more than 10 years. The first changes to Brøndby Strand Centrum are now in public hearing, running until October 19, 2026. After that, the city council is to vote on the local plan.
Mayor Maja Højgaard of the Social Democrats says the district is currently too divided. As she describes it to DR, residents of the almene boliger in Brøndby Strand Parkerne have an annual income that is half that of residents living down by the beach. There is no natural meeting place between the two groups, per the mayor.
Højgaard points to similar urban spaces built elsewhere in Denmark. Per the mayor, that model creates a more lively district where residents meet informally at eye level. She contrasts this with the current pattern of driving in and out by car to reach the shops.
Removed from the prevention list in 2025
Brøndby Strand has previously appeared on the government’s forebyggelsesliste, the prevention list for vulnerable housing areas. The area was removed from that list in December 2025, according to DR. Prevention areas are public housing areas that do not meet the criteria for the parallel society list, but are assessed as at risk of developing into so called ghettos.
Residents interviewed by DR give mixed responses to the plans. Sreyane Manssyn, who lives in the area, says she looks forward to a more modern district. She hopes for better places for young people to meet, for example a kulturhus with room to sit over a cup of coffee.
Resident Jeanette Poulsen tells DR that the modernization has been a long time coming. As she puts it, the current city center has stood there for as many years as she has been alive. She describes the prospect of something new as positive.
Ahmed Kassim, another resident, describes the construction as somewhat chaotic in the townscape. According to him, buildings have been torn down and residents rehoused twice in four years. He says rents rise when residents return, and that many cannot afford the increase.
Brøndby Kommune is also holding a public meeting about the building plans on October 5, 2026, DR reports. The hearing on the first changes closes two weeks later, on October 19.
