The residents of Myllypuro, who oppose the encroachment of the nature area, will hold a demonstration on Monday at Senatintor, while the city government makes a decision on the continuation of the project.
Helsinki The city council is supposed to make a decision on the controversial Myllypuro ice rink on Monday. The matter was already discussed three weeks ago, when it it was decided to leave it on the table.
At this stage, it is about whether the area will be reserved for the ice rink or not. The development reservation is not yet a guarantee that the project will be realized in the area, but it gives the person leading the project the opportunity to make further plans. The new ice rink would be built especially for the needs of figure and speed skating.
The residents of the area have strongly criticized the ice rink project, as it would require the destruction of the protected nature area, Matokallio.
The rocky forest area is the lifeline of the residents, says the activist of the Save Matokallio movement Juha-Pekka Old House.
The ice rink site was already zoned in 2006, after which the area has changed a lot, according to Vanhatalo. The sports park in Myllypuro has been expanded, and a new wooden house area has been built in Myllykylä. All these projects have narrowed the natural area available to residents.
“There are already at least five different sports halls with parking spaces in the area. We don’t think it’s reasonable that even the last forest in the area would be sacrificed as a place to build an ice rink,” says Vanhatalo.
The ice rink would collapse A large part of the Matokallio area and the forest and would reduce the outdoor opportunities of nearby schools and kindergartens, for example. According to Vanhatalo, a beautiful rocky landscape, valuable rotting trees and the habitat of many animals would disappear from the road to the ice rink.
Vanhatalo highlights the fact that moving in nature is a good way to increase fitness and promote well-being. That’s why he wonders why they want to build a sports center in its place, which only serves certain sports.
“This would already be a sports venue for everyone to use for free.”
Also The Helsinki Culture and Leisure Board ended up opposing the proposed location for the hall. The city has identified a new possible location for the hall.
However, according to the city, Vuosaari, Kivikko, Malmi, Oulunkylä, Tali or Malminkartano are not suitable as a place for an ice rink. In them, the site plan would have to be changed, which would delay the project for years, according to the city.
The finished ice sports center would cover 16,000 square meters and include, among other things, two ice hockey rinks and a grandstand for about 2,000 people. At Matokalli, it would take a large piece of forest and rock area, and around 80,000 cubic meters of rock would have to be mined from under it.
The residents of Myllypuro, who oppose the encroachment of the nature area, will hold a demonstration on Monday at Senatintor during the city council meeting from 3 p.m. There will be talks and song performances, among other things.
“We now of course hope that the planning reservation would not be extended, but that we would start looking for a more reasonable place for the hall,” says Juha-Pekka Vanhatalo.
“Rolling the worm rock would be against the strategy of the city of Helsinki, and it would be an irreversible act.”
Read more: Helsinki has not yet made a decision on reserving the area for the controversial ice rink in Myllypuro
Read more: Helsinki’s Matokallio became a point of contention between athletes and nature lovers – this is what a place like this is all about
Read more: Anatomy of the hall dispute: People became interested in nature and it surprised the decision-makers in Helsinki
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