The City of Helsinki is planning major changes to Töölönlahdenpuisto Park. The challenges with the park’s lawn area intended for events have attracted widespread attention, and people have requested more trees to be planted in the park, for example. The planning of the park’s renovation began in autumn 2023. Both short-term and long-term improvements are being planned for the park.
The idea and concept plan of Töölönlahdenpuisto Park serves as the basis for the actual park plan. The idea and concept plan outlines the general guidelines for the future park, such as the principles for developing the planted vegetation and different functionalities. The basis of the design is the preservation of the cultural and natural values of the current park. The plan is now open for comments at the Kerrokantasi service(Link leads to external service) until 30 June. The comments received will be utilised as source data for the park plan.
Park development strives to increase greenness and improve recreational use
The guidelines and principles set out in the idea and concept plan for the development of the park are strongly based on the preferences stated by residents, associations and other operators during the interactive planning stages. Increasing the amount of greenery was one of the most common requests, and nature will now be made an even more integral part of Töölönlahdenpuisto, especially in the northeastern and eastern parts of the park. The aim is to increase the number of new trees in the eastern part of the park while taking into account the valuable views and presence of landmark buildings at the edge of the park. The front of the Finlandia Hall will be made a natural part of the park concept. The park’s vegetation will be made more diverse and more layered, in order to diversify the different park spaces. In addition to experiences of nature, the park visitors can also enjoy the colours of flowering plants.
One of the clear objectives that emerged during the interactive stage was to promote the wellness of residents through the means offered by the park and make it possible for everyone to enjoy the park. The current large lawn area built for large-scale events will be turned into several smaller park event areas. New activity areas will be built in the park, enabling versatile use of the area and inspiring the creation of an experience-rich park. The café of the new park was suggested to be built at the end of Alvar Aallon katu. Water areas will be made part of the park experience, not only in the Töölönlahti shore areas, but also at the park’s side. The popular coastal route around Töölönlahti will be preserved also in the future, but it will be given more space and linked more clearly to Töölönlahdenpuisto Park and the routes being developed.
Park plan to start in the autumn
The preparation of the park plan will be started on the basis of the idea and concept plan in autumn 2024. The park plan outlines the longer-term development view of the park. Giving feedback on the park’s design draft will still be possible during the actual park planning stage.
The construction of quick and, to a large extent, temporary measures, i.e. the ‘Töölönlahti summer park experiment’, has already begun, and visitors will have the chance to enjoy these this summer. Feedback on the success of these measures and further development proposals can be provided via the City's feedback channel(Link leads to external service).