Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2015 | Page 55

Domino Effect
Mikko Lehtinen, Managing Director of
Turku Technology Properties, says that next
phase in the evolution of the Science Park
will begin in spring 2015.
“The making of the campus will start
in earnest as the Turku University of Applied
Sciences will focus all its resources in the
Science Park.” This, in turn, will start a domino effect as other educational players will
claim the properties left vacant by University of Applied Sciences.
“We are able to utilise existing space to
accomplish so much more,” says Lehtinen,
adding that the question that is most on
people’s minds is ‘Why wasn’t this done
before?’
“It’s really such a simple, efficient
solution,” Lehtinen says, obviously glad to
get the ball rolling soon.

Dream Campus
– The Making Of
Currently, Turku Technology Properties
owns 100,000 square metres of existing
premises – and the creation of full-fledged
innovation campus will, eventually, add
another 75,000 sqm into the mix. In the
entire Turku Science Park area, there are
over 250,000 square metres of completed
premises.

Mikko Lehtinen explains that the master plan relies on transforming Itäharju, a
former industrial area located right next to
Science Park, into a new type of neighbourhood which combines studying, living and
leisure in a brand new way. Ambitious highrise construction, restaurants, stores and residential development are all in the cards for
the Science Park – Itäharju combo.
According to Lehtinen, Science Park –
Itäharju area will be transformed into a “true
city district”, with parks, sports grounds and
all types of activities.
“We’re looking to build a place that is
not about business or residential concerns
alone – a place where people simply like to
go to hang out and have fun,” he says.

Cover the Gap
However, in order to fulfil the promise
of the new city district, connectivity needs to
improve a great deal. To facilitate this, a new
hospital – with a price tag of EUR 180 million – will be built across both E18 motorway and the railroad tracks. Timo Hintsanen,
Turku City Planning Director, says that realising the hospital on top of E18 and rail will
go a long way to integrate the local urban
structure, linking the emerging supercampus with downtown.
“Furthermore, we are also looking
into various solutions that boost mobility

within the Science Park – Itäharju campus,”
Hintsanen says, adding that this is very much
in line with the City’s commitment to become
the “most attractive city for students”.
“As internal transportation is made
easier, the campus will really get going.”
There’s also much more that can be done to
boost the cohesion and identity of the campus in various ways: for example, the campus lighting solutions could be provided by
solar means, giving it a “signature look,”
Hintsanen observes.

Greener Energy
Turku Technology Properties is driving this
change with a decidedly green mindset.
Mikko Lehtinen reveals that the company
has looked into producing energy for itself
– and via use of thermal energy, solar panels and excess heat recapture, very impressive results can be achieved