Jonas Olsen
Social Media Specialist
In Høje‑Taastrup, a new public urban space has seen the light of day. A place that reflects a new approach to how technology and community can complement and strengthen one another. Next to one of Microsoft’s state‑of‑the‑art Danish datacenters lies the Office Park—an over 40,000 m² public park developed through a collaboration between Microsoft and the Municipality of Høje‑Taastrup.
Office Park is about more than creating green, local spaces. It symbolizes Microsoft’s commitment to ensuring that the development of local digital infrastructure also enriches the everyday lives of the people who live nearby.
“The Office Park is the result of a strong collaboration with Høje-Taastrup Municipality and an expression of our ambition to be a responsible and engaged neighbor. We look forward to seeing the park become a natural gathering place for the area for many years to come,”
– Mette Kaagaard, CEO of Microsoft Denmark.
For Microsoft, the park is part of a broader and long-term investment in Denmark and Europe. The three Danish datacenters, all of which are part of Microsoft’s so-called Denmark East datacenter region, are among the most sustainable in the world. They are powered by 100% renewable energy sources, and the datacenter in Høje-Taastrup also utilizes excess heat to provide heating for 6,000 local households.
“The Office Park is an example of how urban development and new green spaces can go hand in hand. I have been incredibly pleased with the collaboration with Microsoft. From the very beginning, they have expressed a clear desire to play an active role in our local community. They want to contribute to city life, to the community, and to create something that brings value and enjoyment to the people who live and work here. I would like to acknowledge that and extend a sincere and heartfelt thank you.”
– Michael Ziegler, Mayor of Høje‑Taastrup Municipality.
The idea for the park originated with the Municipality of Høje‑Taastrup, and Microsoft supported it from the very beginning. This paved the way for a design process in collaboration with the Danish architecture firm Gottlieb Paludan Architects.
“It is not often that we see a private company co‑develop a park together with a municipality in this way,” says Sten Sødring, Head of Communications and Development at Gottlieb Paludan. “I find it a truly inspiring way of working.”
The goal of the park, Sten Sødring explains, was to create something of lasting value for the local community — a space that encourages social interaction, supports biodiversity, and thoughtfully integrates the datacenter into its surrounding environment.
The design team used surplus soil to create natural noise berms and gently rolling terrain that serve both aesthetic and acoustic purposes. Existing trees and vegetation were preserved and expanded with new trees and shrub plantings, ensuring that the park felt established from day one.
Aquatic environments featuring new ponds, combined with a planting strategy that uses native species — including wildflower meadows and, over time, thickets and open groves — enhance biodiversity and provide habitats for local wildlife. These choices are not only sustainable but also visual indicators that this is a living, shared space.
Although the park has already been embraced by local residents in Høje‑Taastrup, the landscape will continue to evolve. Sten Sødring estimates that it may take ten to twenty years before the green areas are fully mature. Flexibility is built into the design, allowing space for the local community to help shape its future use — for example through the potential addition of playgrounds, further planting, or new gathering and recreational spaces.
This approach also reflects a growing trend in sustainable urban development: public‑private spaces that balance respect for nature with open access for the community.
The Office Park in Høje‑Taastrup demonstrates that a datacenter can be more than just digital infrastructure. It can be a neighbor, a partner — and even a park. As the demand for cloud infrastructure continues to grow, Microsoft remains committed to building responsibly and investing not only in digital capacity, but also in places, people, and partnerships.
The Office Park marks an important step in rethinking how digital infrastructure can contribute to shared public life — and it may even serve as inspiration for similar initiatives elsewhere.
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