Residents’ evening for Espoonlahti residents discussed Tiiliskivenpolku and Sammalvuori plans and future of Kiviruukki
The series of regional residents’ evenings continued with the Espoonlahti event on 7 March 2024 at the Lippulaiva library where 80 Espoo residents interested in the development of their area gathered. Plan maps were inspected with great interest and visitors were happy to engage in lively conversation with the designers.
At the Espoonlahti residents’ evening, the plans for Tiiliskivenpolku, Tiilismäenrinne and Sammalvuori and the Kiviruukki district plan were on display. This time, the concept of a regional residents’ evening had been streamlined slightly: there was no separate stand for the master plan and the evening focused on the plans made available for public review and the future prospects of Kiviruukki.
Espoo Master Plan 2060 is currently being discussed by the City Planning Committee, and once the City Board decides on making it available for public review, residents’ events concerning it will be organised around the city. The aim is to make the master plan available for public review this spring.
The public transport solutions included in the master plan, which have already been featured in the media, became a topic of discussion during the evening. As a way to spark further discussion on the topic, the draft master plan presented various options for public transport in Espoonlahti, including continuing the metro from Kivenlahti via Espoonlahti to Kauklahti. Residents had questions about things such as potentially increasing traffic volumes in the area and the locations of the metro stations. The possibility of more services in the area was considered a good thing.
Kiviruukki invests in sustainable development
Kiviruukki is already a significant workplace area and in the future, there will be more workplaces in the area once the bioeconomy and circular economy cluster, significant both nationally and internationally, is eventually completed.
The area will also welcome educational institutions such an upper secondary school, Laurea University of Applied Sciences and Omnia, the Joint Authority of Education in Espoo Region, which could in the teaching they provide utilise the local companies and cooperate with them. The educational institutions could use the versatile sports and exercise facility to be established next to the Kivenlahti metro station for their sports and exercise activities. The construction of business premises could start as early as this year, and both Omnia and the upper secondary school are aiming to start teaching in 2027.
New housing is also planned for Kiviruukki. In addition to the overall schedule for Kiviruukki, residents were also interested in the height and construction quality of large-scale residential city blocks and what green elements, perhaps a park, would be included in the local city blocks. In its current state, the area is an old industrial site, which is why residents largely consider the change positive.
Building heights a concern around Tiiliskivenpolku while street areas raise questions in Sammalvuori
Around the Tiiliskivenpolku map, there was a lively discussion about the height to which buildings would be constructed. It was considered in relation to detached houses. Residents also presented questions about the adequacy of parking spaces for residents of the new blocks of flats. Residents were also interested in the distribution of flats, that is, whether there will be large or small flats and whether they will be rental or owner-occupied flats. The participation and assessment scheme (PAS) for Tiiliskivenpolku is available for public review until 3 April.
The plan proposal for Tiilismäenrinne is being prepared again and is estimated to be made available for public review in spring 2024. The aspect of the plan that raised questions among residents was how tall the buildings to be constructed next to the detached houses area would be. This height has now been lowered in the new draft plan, which the residents consider an improvement, but they would still like it to be even lower. In addition, the ecological corridor located in the area, which is significant for both flying squirrels and bird species, was a source of concern. Its preservation and adequacy should be improved, and this will be explored as the planning advances and the nature survey of the area is updated.
In terms of both Tiiliskivenpolku and Tiilismäenrinne, residents raised concerns about the increase in traffic and its effects on the current and future residents of the area.
Sammalvuori Forest will be turned into a recreational area through detailed planning, and the recreation services of the area will remain largely unchanged. The parks located in the area and Sammalvuori will remain as local recreational areas. A route for pedestrian and bicycle traffic will be established on the southern edge of Sammalvuori while the rest of the route network will remain path-like. The urban structure in Sammalvuori will be made moderately more dense through complementary building. Planning has identified a need to grow street areas, and residents would like the streets to remain narrow. Furthermore, whether a few particular streets are necessary was discussed by residents. The participation and assessment scheme (PAS) for Sammalvuori is available for public review until 3 April.
The participation and assessment schemes (PAS) for Tiiliskivenpolku and Sammalvuori are available for public review from 4 March to 3 April 2024 on the City of Espoo website. Opinions on them can be submitted to: : kirjaamo@espoo.fi Please remember to mention the name of the plan and the area number available on the plan page.
Read more about the plan on the Tiiliskivenpolku plan page.
Read more about the plan on the Sammalvuori plan page.
Read more about the Tiilismäenrinne plan, which is currently at the proposal stage, on the plan page.
More information about the Kiviruukki district plan is available on the plan page.