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About Urban Values

Urban Values was founded by Karl Jon Sørli and is built on more than twenty-five years of experience from private and public sector real estate and urban development projects. Sørli’s background includes experience as a carpenter, building technician, engineer and chartered engineer with a master’s degree in urban and regional planning.

Karl Jon Sørli on a pier in Bjørvika
THE PERSON BEHIND THE COMPANY: Urban Values is built on experience gained across the entire development process. Photo: Urban Values
Downtown Boston with the park above the Big Dig tunnel
THE STARTING POINT: The master’s thesis explored business interests in planning of central urban areas, using stakeholders in The Central Artery Corridor Project, part of Boston’s Big Dig, as a case study. Photo: Hal Bergman / iStock

  • Experience across the entire value chain

    The experience gained through collaboration with talented colleagues, partners and professional teams forms the most important foundation of the expertise that Urban Values builds upon. This experience ranges from smaller commercial buildings and major infrastructure projects to one of the largest and most complex urban development projects in Norway. It covers the entire value chain, from land and property acquisition, planning and concept development through to contracts, delivery, operation and disposal. This breadth of experience provides an understanding of how decisions made throughout a project’s lifecycle influence quality, deliverability, value creation and financial performance.

    Karl Jon Sørli in safety gear on a construction site by the fjord
    EXPERIENCE: Experience across the entire development process provides a stronger basis for sound decisions and integrated solutions. Photo: Urban Values

  • Why Urban Values

    Urban Values was established because Sørli wanted to apply his experience across a wider range of urban development and real estate projects. The ambition is to contribute to both large-scale urban development projects and smaller real estate projects, many of which are complex yet capable of making a significant contribution to urban areas, transport hubs and local communities. Working across different project types, scales and phases also creates opportunities to further develop expertise and transfer knowledge between projects, disciplines and cities. The motivation is to contribute to successful and commercially sustainable urban and real estate development through strong collaboration and carefully assembled project teams.

    Partners gathered around a long table for lunch
    COLLABORATION: Successful projects are created through strong partnerships, the right team and shared ambitions. Photo: Urban Values