Photo: 3D Render adding that pushing these areas onwards sends a“ strong message” that the city wants to pursue districts with specific growth potential.
“ There will be also other interesting, strongly developing areas under the city plan – the key here will be the use of rail to accommodate for smooth logistics.”
Human Touch
Vision 2050 states that Helsinki is“ a city with a human scale”. Urban spaces will be designed on terms that suit pedestrians, allowing for unprecedented walkability. In the future, people will flock to cities that are pleasant to live in, where everyday life runs smoothly, and where the range of opportunities is ever-expanding for people and businesses alike.
The City of Helsinki acknowledges that achieving this vision requires a great deal from the planning process. After all, practices tied to the increasingly strict set of norms( and the consideration of sometimes conflicting values) easily lead to compromises that serve no purpose at all.
Vision 2050 determines a clear-cut target state which can reached, but not without some tough choices about values. However, the City feels that these choices have to be made, since the decentralisation of the region’ s community structure, increasing traffic congestion, and housing prices ballooning to a level beyond the reach of regular wage earners is to no one’ s advantage.
Solid City
According to the new city plan, one-third of the new construction planned for the next few decades will be fill-in construction, solidifying the urban structure. Another
one-third of the new floor space allowed by the city plan will be focused on city boulevards as the inner city expands. Large motorway-like access roads will be turned into city boulevards. The primary goal is to improve the city structure rather than to come up with traffic and transport solutions only. The new boulevards will allow whole new city districts to be built as extensions of the current inner city.
“ We look at the city boulevards as something which enables growth in many places which have been, possibly, overlooked until now,” adds Piimies.
The remaining one-third of the new construction will consist of large new areas, the main one of which is the Malmi airport area, which can be re-developed into homes for 25,000 residents.
Draw Up the Timeline
According to Piimies, the city plan process has already advanced to its next phase – the making of the execution plan.“ In 2017, we’ re composing the execution plan in order to come up with a schedule for everything we need to accomplish.” In addition to this effort, also regular zoning operations are carried out as usual.
The Helsinki city plan is also integrated with plans for the entire Helsinki Region and its municipalities. The city plan relies on a joint plan for a traffic and transport system and land use as well as on a joint housing strategy. Rapid growth is, after all, a reality not only in Helsinki but in the entire Helsinki Region, as the Helsinki Metropolitan Area( HMA) serves as the premier economic engine of the nation. l
Sami J. Anteroinen other parts of Helsinki. The light rail network will further complement this highly effective traffic system. The city will be concentrated along the traffic arteries, the expanding centres and in what are currently highway-like areas.
Hub Excellence
The city plan acknowledges that there are special“ hot zones” for growth in the city – such as the“ power triangle” of Pasila – Vallila – Kalasatama.
“ With the development of these three neighbourhoods, Helsinki will gain another hub for business and services in addition to the downtown area,” Marja Piimies says,
Photo: Helin & Co Architects, Voima Graphics Oy
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