Town planning of Finnoo centre to be reprocessed – more extensive obligation to protect birds

The town plan of Finnoo centre will be redrafted in autumn 2021. The future town plan obligates the City to take care of a protective zone that separates the housing construction area from a valuable bird basin.  

The Supreme Administrative Court overturned the plan approved by Espoo City Council in May. In the Court ruling, the most essential matter turned out to be the protection of the Finnoviken bird wetland, meaning the Finnoo basin and its environment. The Court did not find the measures of alleviating the negative impact of construction and increased human population on birds to be sufficient. 

A maintenance and usage plan had been prepared for the bird area, including several measures to alleviate the negative impact of the residential area on birds. According to the Supreme Administrative Court, the maintenance and usage plan was a separate document and therefore not a part of the town plan, which is why the measures presented could not be seen as binding in the same way as planning regulations. 

During the drafting phase starting now, the measures will be changed into legally binding planning regulations. In other respects, the new town plan is intended to have the same content as the solution approved by the Council in 2018. The goal is to have the plan ready for approval processing in the spring. 

The Finnoo basin and its environment is a bird area of both national and international value. A new metro station will be built nearby, and the plan now being redrafted would allow for housing for about 2,700 residents in the area.  

The drafting materials of the town plan will be available for viewing in September on the City of Espoo’s website and at a planning walk event held on 21 September at 17. During the planning walk, you can learn about the area and the measures that alleviate the negative impact of construction together with the planners. The event is particularly directed at the future residents of the area, nature enthusiasts and any other interested parties. You do not need to register for the planning walk in advance. The starting point is the parking area of the birdwatching towers on Hyljeluodontie. 

Finnoo centre, to be built along the metro line extending west of Matinkylä, is a new and distinctive maritime urban area. The district’s planning has been ongoing for about a decade. Finnoo, to be developed as an example of climate change mitigation, will be a combination of dense urban structure, pedestrian and cycling traffic and public transport, valuable recreational and nature conservation areas and production zones focusing on sustainable energy. 

The first construction phase of Finnoo’s main streets has ended. Housing construction in the Djupsundsbäcken and Finnoonkallio areas, close to the metro station, is underway. The first residents will move to the district in September. 

In the future, the entire area of Finnoo will be built into a district of 17,000 residents. 

The metro will start operating in the area in 2023.