The Helsinki City Council’s 150-year jubilee decision will allow young people aged 7-19 who live in Helsinki to visit the Swimming Stadium, the Kumpula outdoor swimming pool and the Villa Hakasalmi museum at no cost, as well as attend select concerts and other performances at most of the city’s Cultural Centres (Caisa, Kanneltalo, Malmitalo, Stoa and Vuotalo) for free.
The decision, taken at the City Council’s 150-year jubilee meeting on 15 January, will come into effect on 1 February and will be valid until the end of the year 2025. With the decision, the City Council seeks to encourage young people to stay active and enjoy cultural experiences. The decision also supports the city’s goals to prevent segregation in the capital.
This January marks 150 years since the Helsinki City Council convened for the first time. On major anniversaries such as this, the City Council has traditionally issued a special jubilee decision on a timely investment in the future.
An example from years past is the City Council decision from 1962, when Helsinki celebrated its 150-anniversary of being declared the nation’s capital. At that time, a decision was made to approve the construction of a new concert hall and congress centre, according to a city plan prepared by the esteemed Finnish architect Alvar Aalto, for the western shore of Töölönlahti Bay. The resulting building was later named Finlandia Hall.
This year’s jubilee decision from the Helsinki City Council will be confirmed by the Culture and Leisure Subcommittee later in January. More detailed information about the upcoming free admission events will be published on the city’s hel.fi website.
In addition to taking the traditional decision at the jubilee meeting, the council also carried out a discussion on the future of the council and local democracy. The meeting commenced with presentations from the Helsinki City Council Chair Reetta Vanhanen, Doctor of Philosophy and historian Kati Katajisto, Urban Strategist Tommi Laitio and Mayor of Helsinki Juhana Vartiainen. The Sibelius Upper Secondary School’s Chamber Choir also performed at the meeting.
All decisions taken at the 15 January jubilee meeting will be published on the Decisions website under the heading “Decisions: Helsinki City Council”. The livestream recording of the meeting will also be available on the city’s online video service Helsinki Channel.
See all the Helsinki City Council’s 150-year anniversary events on the “Helsinki City Council 150 years” pages of the city’s website.
