Breidholt (Breiðholt) Suburb
Breidholt (Breiðholt) Suburb
Breidholt, a housing development clustered over the hill of the same name, was the first planned suburb of Reykjavik, where today approximately 20,000 people live. About 60% of Iceland’s total population (ca. 332,000 in 2016), live in the greater Reykjavik area.
There was once a housing shortage in Reykjavik when people flocked there from the countryside during WWII when Iceland was occupied by British forces and later Americans who remained until the war ended. During that time, people were needed to build the domestic airport and housing for military personnel.
There was a steady stream of people moving into Reykjavik but they didn’t move out after the war. As the city hadn’t planned for this population growth it was decided to plan a big suburb for Reykjavik on a site formerly used as farmland; the first buildings in Breidholt were ready for occupation in 1968.