Helsinki citizens who have a mobile telephone number will receive a sms with instructions about how to act if they suspect a coronavirus infection. The sms will be sent to all mobile numbers, which are not secret. Sending will start on Monday 30 March.

On 20 March, the City of Helsinki teamed up with local parishes and charity organisations to announce a new campaign for reaching out to the self-isolating elderly population. The service came together in the space of just one week, with the first phone calls made already on 27 March.

In its latest round of decisions, the City of Helsinki has decided to temporarily waive rental payments on commercial premises and terraces, refund fees for day care services, shut down two market halls, and more.

The Musiikkitalo concert hall organ will be built by Austrian organ builders Rieger Orgelbau. The instrument will have 123 registers, which will make it the world’s largest concert hall organ. The new instrument will be completed in autum 2022 and inaugurated on 1 January 2023.

One of the employee benefits provided by the City of Helsinki is rental housing. The City has revised the rules for providing housing benefits to employees, so that employees of sectors suffering from workforce shortages are prioritized in the allocation of housing.

In a bid to avoid staff layoffs during the coronavirus outbreak, the City of Helsinki has decided to switch some of its municipal employees to other tasks. The move will also enhance preparedness levels in areas in need of a larger workforce.

The City of Helsinki is actively seeking solutions to help the many businesses that find themselves in dire financial circumstances due to the covid-19 coronavirus. The city’s opening decisions in this effort are designed to keep the hardest hit companies from developing immediate cash-flow problems.

This year, the city bike season will start in Helsinki and Espoo earlier than last year. You will be able to buy season passes on the city bike website from Thursday 19 March and the bikes will be available from Monday 23 March. However, all stations will not be in use from 23 March.