Terms and conditions for reservations

The Event Square is located in the lobby of Helsinki City Hall at Pohjoisesplanadi 11–13 / Sofiankatu 1. All events held in the lobby of Helsinki City Hall are public and open to all.

The Event Square in the lobby of the Helsinki City Hall is an arena for all Helsinki developers, from city residents and communities to decision makers and city employees. The Event Square may be used for events centred around developing Helsinki. Events held at the Event Square may include:

• Inclusion and co-development activities among city employees or with city residents
• Events focusing on future Helsinki
• Events providing visitors with an understanding of the daily life of Helsinki residents
• Activities with themes that support the City of Helsinki’s strategic goals

The Event Square is suitable for holding seminars, press conferences, discussions and workshop activities. It accommodates around one hundred people.

Political parties or religious organisations may not organise events at the Event Square. Commercial events or any other events deemed unsuitable by the City of Helsinki may not be held at the Event Square. The City of Helsinki will make the final decision about the suitability of events based on applications, reserving the right to choose events for the Event Square.

Due to the high demand for the Event Square, the annual number of events held by event organisers from outside the City of Helsinki may be restricted to promote the broad and diverse use of the space in accordance with the event criteria.

The Event Square is also available for booking by school and daycare centre groups. Annual major city events are also prominently featured at the Event Square. 

• To make a booking, the electronic application form must be sent and the booking terms accepted.
• The booking made for the Event Square must take place during opening hours. Differing timetables and extra costs must be agreed on separately.
• The Event Square is to be used only by the party stated as the event organiser for the intended purpose of the event. The event organiser does not have the right to sub-let the Event Square or any of its spaces nor in any other manner allow the spaces to be used by another party.
• The City of Helsinki will confirm the event organiser’s booking by sending an email confirmation. A confirmed booking is binding. It is only possible to cancel a confirmed booking in the following ways:
  • The City of Helsinki reserves the right to cancel a booking if the event deviates significantly from the reported description.
  • The City of Helsinki reserves the right to cancel a booking or change the date if the event cannot be organised due to exceptional circumstances (as specified in section 8), or if the event’s character does not fulfil the Event Square’s event criteria, or if the event is in violation of the booking conditions.
  • The City of Helsinki must be notified as soon as possible if the Event Organiser’s event will not take place.

• The event organiser sees to the removal of their possessions immediately after the event. If the event organiser does not remove their possessions as agreed then the City of Helsinki has the right to remove or dispose of the items in question. The consequent expenses are the responsibility of the event organiser. The City of Helsinki does not offer compensation for the removed or disposed items.
• The event organiser must leave the Event Square in the same condition that they received it in. The event organiser must notify the city about any damaged incurred during the use of the square.
• The event organiser must take into account  and respect the City Hall’s status as a protected site.
• The Event Square cannot be used for purposes against Finnish law or common decency.
• The event organiser cannot conduct any modification or repair work in the space or attach anything to the walls or other surfaces without permission.
• The event organiser is responsible for obtaining copyright and other intellectual property rights required for the event.
• The event organiser must adhere to official fire safety regulations as well as the City Hall’s safety guidelines.
• During events, event organisers or collaborating companies may sell event-related products, such as books and other publications. The products must be carefully chosen and support the event’s content. Sales should be modest, and they should not be the focal point of the event. Sales may only be conducted by the event organiser or collaborating company using electronic payment methods.

The City Hall lobby’s Event Square catering rights are owned by Palmia. Private catering and personal alcohol beverages are forbidden. If needed, the event organiser must order food or alcohol catering from Palmia via email: kansliankeittio@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program)

Communication of the event is mainly handled by the event organiser. The City Hall may freely use the photo material of the event in all non-commercial communications related to its operations and its marketing, including webpages.

Events can be held from Monday to Friday, between 9 am and 6 pm (extended to 8 pm on Thursdays if necessary). If there are no events at the Event Square, the City Hall doors close at 4 pm. An exception to this are events hosted by the City of Helsinki, during which the City Hall lobby is closed.

In the exceptional case of a labour strike, disruptions to energy or water distribution, or any other comparable incident, the event organiser is freed from their obligations for the period of time that these obstacles are present.

The presence of exceptional circumstances must be proven with a testimonial from an authority or any other testimony seen as reliable by both parties. A contracting party cannot invoke exceptional circumstances unless they have declared it as soon as they have been notified of the situation. The end or resolution of the exceptional circumstances must also be declared without delay.

Occurrences considered comparable to exceptional circumstances are official state visits and other similar events. The City of Helsinki reserves the right to cancel or move an event due to any of the situations related to the organisation of events or any other seemingly exceptional circumstances described above.

If the event organiser causes damages to the City of Helsinki by violating the booking conditions or by damaging the Event Square or its materials, they must pay reparations for the damages. The City of Helsinki is not responsible for any indirect damages suffered by the event organiser.

Finnish legislation shall applies to these terms and conditions, and disputes will be resolved in the Helsinki district court.