Sanctions | The city of Helsinki is trying to buy Helsinki hall

Helsinki the city takes steps to buy the former Hartwall arena, i.e. Helsinki Hall.

“The city will take measures to buy the required shares or arena property by sale,” the city informs. This means that the city is now trying to buy the hall itself, as the store and getting the hall open has so far not progressed elsewhere.

Primary it would be important to get the hall into use, says the head of the office Jukka-Pekka Ujula.

First, according to Ujula, the plan is to contact the sellers and inquire whether there is a willingness to sell. There are no estimates on how much this will cost the city yet, says Ujula.

The city also does not yet have a plan as to whether the hall would possibly remain as the city's property in the future or whether it would be sold on, says Ujula.

At the same time, the city is preparing for other measures in case an agreement cannot be reached on the deal with reasonable measures and within a reasonable time. This ultimately means expropriation.

The hall has been closed since the end of February 2022, when Russia started its war of aggression in Ukraine.

As the situation drags on, it is challenging in many ways. Getting the hall open is important for the cultural and sports sectors as well as major events and other business life, the city states in its announcement.

Town's the primary wish has been that a new private owner could be found for the Ilmala hall through a voluntary sale. According to the city's information, the buyer's group is negotiating to buy the hall.

However, Helsinki considers the implementation of the deal within the deadline to be uncertain.

The city council considers that in this situation it is necessary for the city to take the necessary measures to promote the use of the hall.

At the same time, the city is preparing for other measures in case an agreement cannot be reached on the deal with reasonable measures and within a reasonable time.