Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2020 | Page 49

The urban development facility of the City of Turku in the Visitor and Innovation Centre Joki.
opening of the new campus of Turku Uni-
versity of Applied Sciences.
But even bigger and bolder plans await
just beyond the horizon. Going forward, the
Science Park could well continue its inte-
gration into the downtown area by expand-
ing across Helsingintie road, to the present
Itäharju industrial district. This means that
the Turku Science Park of the future would
integrate working, living and leisure even
more closely as part of the existing urban
structure and public transport connections.
“This would be done by building a
deck construction from Kupittaa to Itäharju,”
explains Lehtinen, pointing out that the deck
is a great fit for all types of hybrid construc-
tion, from residential to services to office.
Also public sector projects, such as
schools, could be realized there. Still, the
first priority, according to the initial plans,
is student housing.
“The deck alone could feature as much
as 200,000 square meters of new construc-
tion,” says Lehtinen.
All Hands on Deck
“In fact, there’s already a planning compe-
tition in the works for the development of
the deck,” says Niko Kyynäräinen, Manag-
ing Director for regional development com-
pany Turku Science Park Ltd.
“We’re hoping to launch the contest in
2020 and get the ball rolling on the deck,”
Kyynäräinen says.
According to Kyynäräinen, the Turku
Science Park has proven it’s a killer concept
many times over – and it only makes good
sense to expand on that success.
“We have a situation here where great
functionality and connectivity boost engage-
ment – companies are really getting added
value from the synergies within the busi-
ness community.”
Kyynäräinen adds that none of this has
happened by accident: the search has been on
for “winning combinations” for a long time,
and the local ecosystem has been meticu-
lously developed onwards over the years.
“Now we’re able to reap the rewards
of that hard work,” says Kyynäräinen, quite
pleased with the fact that local business
scene is presently firing on all cylinders.
Core Excellence
Timo Hintsanen, Turku City Planning Direc-
tor, points out that a big part of the Science
Park’s appeal is the great location. “While
many science parks linger on the outskirts
of cities, that is simply not the case here,”
says Hintsanen.
“Where else can you find a science
park located in the core of the city?” he
asks, adding that having business, sci-
ence and universities all located within one
hectare of space is a rare combination
indeed.
Hintsanen also observes that the Sci-
ence Park is very apt at channeling economic
growth, as companies of all sizes flock to the
park and lock into the local network.
“Talking about the future, it is clear
that Turku is one of the three growth hubs
in Finland. What’s more, we have industries
here that are able to thrive in just about any
economic trend,” Hintsanen says.
Homes for Talent
Jyrki Lappi, Land Use Director for the City
of Turku, points out that also residential con-
struction has been very intense in Turku. “In
2018, there was, proportionally speaking,
more apartments being built here than any-
where else,” Lappi says, adding that the
growth arrows keep trending up in the fore-
seeable future, too.
“The local industries are growing and
require workers, so business and residen-
tial development is likely to continue hand
in hand.”
Actually, the need for skilled labor is
so pronounced, that the University of Turku
was just granted the right to expand its edu-
cational range with Master’s Degree Pro-
grams in Mechanical Engineering and Mate-
rial Technology.
For several years now, the University
of Turku has pursued the expansion of its
educational portfolio with a view to create a
sustainable solution for supporting the busi-
ness world. Research, product development,
and the experts graduating from the Univer-
sity of Turku are all factors which contrib-
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