New swimming centre and outdoor swimming pool to Espoonlahti - residents’ opinions surveyed at the start of planning

The Sports and Wellbeing Committee approved the needs assessment for the new indoor swimming centre in February 2026. In the starting stage, the City Planning Department and the Premises Department will draw up preliminary plans, commission a nature survey, and organise a residents’ survey. The plan’s participation and assessment scheme and preparation materials will be made available for public review around the end of 2026 or early 2027. The plan proposal will likely be finished in 2027 and the plan approved in 2028. Construction can start after the plan has become valid. The plan amendment will include a swimming centre, an outdoor swimming pool, and a car park facility.

The original intention for the indoor swimming pool in Espoonlahti was to renovate and expand the current swimming centre, which is old and in poor condition. However, this would have caused an interruption in the use of the swimming pool, so the plan went back to the preparation table. 

To keep the old swimming pool in use during the construction project, a different location was needed for the new swimming centre. This was found next door on the plot of the day care centre, and the city submitted a new plan application in November 2025.
‘We intend to zone a new day care centre on the plot of the old Espoonlahti fire station a little bit further away from the current day care centre. The new fire station is located north of Länsiväylä in Sammalvuori,’ says Janika Pesonen, who leads the preparation of the plan.

The new indoor swimming centre will be larger and offer more diverse activities than the old one. Local residents have already expressed their wishes for an outdoor swimming centre that would include a pool for fitness swimmers and acquajogging and which could act as a cold plunge pool in the winter. The residents’ wish list also includes a multi-purpose pool, a kiddie pool, a wading pool, and a water slide for children. Resident feedback about the new swimming centre in Espoonlahti was collected in the My Espoo on the Map survey in 2024.

The needs assessment, which was approved by the Sports and Wellbeing Committee as the basis for the planning of the new swimming centre and outdoor swimming pool, determines in more detail the facilities that are necessary for the new indoor swimming centre.
‘Such facilities would include a 50-metre main pool that could be used in international swimming competitions, a deep multipurpose pool, a teaching pool for children, and wading and swimming pools for children. Facilities for a water exercise and aquatic therapy pool, cold plunge pool, audience stands, a café, and a gym could also be organised,’ Pesonen lists.

Arkkitehtitoimisto ALA has been selected as the design consultant for the swimming centre project. In regard to traffic planning, the city will consult Liikennesuunnittelu Kutoset Oy and in landscape planning, Aino Landscaping Oy. The city's multi-disciplinary group of experts works in close cooperation with the consultants.

As the planning process is now in its early stages, the city is utilising the Voxit platform to request opinions and feedback on what the users of the indoor swimming pool think the new Espoonlahti swimming centre and outdoor swimming pool should look like.  The discussion thread consists of statements where respondents can click Like to support the statements. The statements include: "I'm excited about the new swimming centre," "A waterslide would be awesome," and "The outdoor swimming pool is a great idea." Respondents can also add new statements to the discussion. The discussion will be open between 18 May and 16 August 2026 for all Espoo residents and anyone interested in the new Espoonlahti swimming pool. New statements can be added until 17 June, after which respondents can vote on the added statements until 16 August 2026.

The survey will provide the planners with valuable information from residents that supports the planning process. The planners will use this information when preparing the first preliminary materials of the plan, i.e. the participation and assessment scheme, which will become available for public review in late 2026 or early 2027. A resident event will also be organised around the time when the participation and assessment scheme is made available.

Participate in the Voxit discussion on the new Espoonlahti swimming centre and outdoor swimming pool: https://espoo.voxit.fi/9mtxjsx2hw(external link, opens in a new window)

Read more about the new indoor swimming centre in Espoonlahti on the plan webpage.