Editorial | The wasteland of Eteläsatama is finally getting life and activity

The parade ground in the heart of Helsinki, Eteläsatama, will come to life in the next few years, when the construction of Makasiinranta will be realized based on the Saaret proposal. The national landscape has been a parking lot for too long.

Helsinki The center’s parade ground, Eteläsatama, will finally turn from a closed wasteland into a space open to citizens. In the next few years, new life will come to the area named Makasiinranta, when the beach will come Islands. The proposal won the design competition, the result of which the city announced on Thursday evening.

Islands-the buildings in the proposal have many glass walls consisting of small windows. Between the buildings there are corridors extending to the seashore, and the inner parts of the area are proposed to include cafes, restaurants, galleries and shops as well as workspaces and no less than two hotels.

Plenty of plants have been planned for the walls and roofs of low-carbon buildings. The purpose is to create a new landmark for climate-wise Helsinki, whose goal is carbon neutrality by 2035.

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A lively public space is needed in the area. Nowadays, the area of ​​Eteläsatama is mainly a terminal and parking area, which is not an uplifting sight in the maritime national landscape. It’s time to make the beach area available to the townspeople and guests.

The city intends to develop the area as part of the walkable downtown and the beach route that goes around the shores of Helsinki, as well as the location of the architecture and design museum that will come to the area later.

The area must be built respecting the historical environment. Eteläsatama is one of Helsinki’s most valuable places, a symbol of the maritime city and a nationally significant national landscape that also supports the Suomenlinna World Heritage Site. The buildings must fit into the skyline of the empire center and harmonize with both the buildings and the nearby valuable parks.

In the end, however, what is particularly interesting is what remains between and around the buildings after the area is finished. The beach must not be filled with houses alone.

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To the area over the years, the design has received strong criticism from the architectural community. The proposed buildings have been considered, among other things, too massive for the sensitive cultural environment.

Many projects have collapsed after controversy. A few years ago, a Guggenheim art museum was planned for the area, which was abandoned with great fanfare. The same happened on the Katajanokka side for the architecture museum and the design hotel. Sometimes there has been a feeling that nothing is good enough for a parade ground – and so it has been considered a parking lot.

Helsinki’s core has suffered from a quiet down. One of the reasons for that is that there has been absolutely no reason to go to the corners of Kauppatori. The Allas Sea Pool, which crept into the market as a temporary solution, has shown that there are people who come when there is something to do.

The construction of Eteläsatama now offers an opportunity to bring more life to the city center. Since no giant financing has appeared, a sensible alternative is an entity that also has facilities that generate income and attract city residents and tourists – such as cafes, restaurants and cultural offerings.

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Southern port the change is now possible, as the Port of Helsinki concentrates Tallinn traffic to the West Port. Stockholm traffic, on the other hand, will move to Katajanokka when the construction of the area begins.

Hopefully we will get to the construction of Makasiinranta soon. Revitalizing Eteläsatama is urgent, as the city is undergoing rapid change. If businesses and people leave, they and they cannot be easily brought back.

The national landscape has been a wasteland for too long. With the construction of Makasiinranta, Helsinki’s maritime facade will get a new look at once, and Islands hopefully it will bring people and life to the shore.

The editorials are HS’s positions on a current topic. The articles are prepared by HS’s editorial department, and they reflect the journal principle line.

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