Espoo Magazine 2/2021

ESPOO ESBO
In the summer, the
archipelago attracts
summer cottage
owners and tourists
alike. Some people
live in the archipelago
all year round.
A magazine for Espoo residents 2 2021
Summer&
the archipelago
Renewing
Leppävaara
Tools for
employment
Heaps of things
to do outside

editorial
The editorial
takes a stand
on issues
of current interest
in the City
of Espoo.
We are all different, we
are all Espoo residents
There are about 293,000 people living in Espoo. This
is a huge number of people who share the same living
environment and the same city services. Yet, everyone’s
daily life is different. Did you know, for example, that
there are more than 120 languages spoken in Espoo? Or
that sports clubs in Espoo offer more than 90 different
sports for you to choose from?
Every Espoo resident has the right to be informed
about what is going on in their home town. Everyone
must have the opportunity to give feedback and participate
in the development of good solutions for everyone.
That’s why we openly share the city’s affairs on many
different channels and in several languages. In the
Espoo Magazine, which is published four times a year,
we talk about the city’s services and development and
highlight interesting people, places and experiences –
life in Espoo. Our most important channel is the espoo.
fi website, which we are in the process of renewing.
You can take a peek at website under construction
at beta.espoo.fi. You can also give feedback
on the new site there. And don’t forget to follow
us on social media!
This is an important time in our everyday
lives. Advance voting in municipal elections
has started and the actual election day is
13 June. This is an opportunity for you to
influence who will represent us in Espoo’s
decision-making bodies. Council members
and other elected officials decide on
all the issues that are closest to our daily
lives.
Johanna Pajakoski
Communications Director
20
23
Contents
3 Calendar and Picks
A trial of shared cars.
8 Theme
Leppävaara’s growth requires renewal.
14 At your service
Kimmo Leinonen promotes esports.
15 What’s on
Ship ahoy! Archipelago
boats start in June.
20 Right now
Individuality is highlighted in
employment services.
23 Encounters
The Museum Educator’s Salon is a
great place to talk about, say, hockey.
24 Pearl
The city’s nature attractions
updated in a book.
26 Espoo people
Being a Suvisaaristo resident
is often hereditary.
28 Swedish in Espoo
Kameleontti due for completion
in two years
30 Us
Summer on wheels without engines.
No shortage of route options.
2
31 Together
The extensive benefits
of club activities.

5 June – 29 Aug
Espoo’s archipelago boats
at your service.
See routes for archipelago
boats on page 15.
13 June
Election day
for municipal
elections.
8 June
Advance voting
in municipal
elections ends.
17 June
The results of the joint application to
vocational and general upper secondary
education will be published on 17 June
at the earliest. The supplementary
application roundfor study places that
have not been filled inthe spring’s joint
application round will begin after the
publication of the results.
calendar jun–aug/2021
Check the calendar
for the main events
and key dates of
the summer.
1 July
Acceptance of a
study place must be
confirmed by 1 July
at the latest.
Read more about the
Espoo Day programme
in advance at
espoopaiva.fi/en/events.
Espoo Day is celebrated
throughout Espoo on the
last Saturday of August.
11 Aug
The autumn term for the
City of Espoo’s pre-primary
education, comprehensive
schools and upper secondary
schools begins.
21 Aug
Publication
of the next issue of
Espoo Magazine.
A magazine for Espoo residents
Public bulletin to all households. FEEDBACK AND SUGGESTIONS: espoolehti@omnipress.fi
PUBLISHER City of Espoo, PO Box 12, 02070 City of Espoo, 09 81 621, espoo.fi,
firstname.lastname@espoo.fi EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Johanna Pajakoski, Communications Director
EDITORS Omnipress Oy, espoolehti@omnipress.fi MANAGING EDITOR Tiina Parikka
LAYOUT Oona Kavasto/Hank PRINTED BY Punamusta DISTRIBUTION SSM
NOTIFICATIONS jakelupalaute@omnipress.fi COVER Timo Porthan ISSN 1798-8438

Picks
Espoo’s official population was
292,796 at the turn of the year
2020–2021.
19 per cent of Espoo residents, or 55,624
people, spoke something other than Finnish
or Swedish as their native language.
Arkkitehtitoimisto HKP
Espoo on
social media
Facebook
Espoo – Esbo
Posts from different parts
of the city and news from
various City of Espoo actors.
Tapiola Sports Park, aerial view from the west.
The planning of the Tapiola Sports Park is progressing well
Twitter
@EspooEsbo
Timely updates and quick responses.
Bulletins, answers to
questions and discussions.
THE development of the Tapiola Sports
Park in Espoo took an important step forward
when the City Council approved the
alteration of the area’s local detailed plan
in March. The sports park will be a centre
for exercise, sports and events for all Espoo
residents.
The area will offer a wide range of sports
facilities, an international-level stadium with
6,000 seats, apartments for 900 residents
and possibly a 14-storey hotel. Parking will
be provided underneath the stadium. The
park’s location next to the metro station
makes it easy for people to travel to large
public events by public transport.
The City of Espoo aims to become carbon
neutral by 2030. In 2019, the City Board
decided to implement the stadium project
in a carbon-neutral manner. Carbon neutrality
means minimising climate emissions
and compensating for the remaining emissions.
Instagram
@espooesbo
Great moments, events and
landscapes through the eyes
of Espoo residents.
#espoohetki
Please note that collection vehicles will tour in the autumn
DUE to the pandemic, the Helsinki Region
Environmental Services Authority (HSY)
has decided to postpone its collection
vehicle tour until the autumn. Usually the
tour takes place in the spring.
The tour will start in Espoo at the turn
of August and September. Exact schedules
and reception sites will be updated
at hsy.fi/keraysautot as the tour dates get
closer. In addition to Espoo and Helsinki,
the vehicles will tour in Vantaa, Kauniainen
and Kirkkonummi.
The collection vehicles accept three
types of domestic waste free of charge:
hazardous waste, metal items and electric
or electronic equipment. The service
provided by the touring collection
vehicles is specifically aimed at people
without a car, but all residents can bring
waste to them.
4 A magazine for Espoo residents

CHECK
THIS OUT!
In this section of the
magazine, we introduce
interesting sites all
Espoo residents have
free access to.
Boulder field
in Tiistilä
THE boulder field in Tiistilä is one of
the finest raised beaches in Espoo.
The area is dozens of metres long
and wide and consists of rounded
stones of similar sizes. The boulder
field dates back to the Litorina Sea
and came about around the same
time as the raised beach in the
Friisinkallio Nature Reserve. The
Tiistilä boulder field is located
about 50 metres south of the
end of Kalaonnentie road.
The Tiistilä boulder field was formed by seaside waves.
Q & A
In this section of the
magazine, we answer
the most often asked
questions received by
the city at the time the
magazine is published.
?
Can I still use my +68 sports
wristband to travel by
archipelago boat and swim in the
lido this summer? Where can I
recharge my wristband?
The +68 sports wristband can be
used this summer to travel by
archipelago boat and swim in the
lido with a friend. You can activate
your +68 sports wristband for the
2021–2022 season at one of Espoo’s
Service Points after the coronavirus
closures at swimming pools and
gyms have ended, or at swimming
pools after they have been reopened.
?
Where can I find information
about the services on the Waterfront
Walkway?
The Waterfront Walkway is about 40
kilometres long. There are several
cafeterias and places to visit along
the walkway. You can find more
information about the Waterfront
Walkway and its services on the
website of the City of Espoo or VisitEspoo.
Service Points also provide
Waterfront Walkway maps.
?
Where are Espoo’s dog-friendly
beaches?
Dogs can swim at signposted dogfriendly
beaches in Laajalahti and
Toppelund. The Toppelund beach
is maintained to a higher standard,
whereas less maintenance is carried
out at the Laajalahti beach.
A magazine for Espoo residents 5

Picks
74.2 per cent of Espoo residents, or 217,202 people,
spoke Finnish or Sámi as their mother tongue and
6.8 per cent, or 19,970 people, spoke Swedish.
According to preliminary
information, Espoo’s population
grew by 780 inhabitants from
January to March.
City of Espoo
Translation application could enable
multilingual customer service
Sound quality
proved to be an
important factor for
the functionality
of the application.
Masks and plexiglass
screens reduced
the quality of
interpretation.
THE City of Espoo experimented with a
translation application to find out if it
could make customer service more efficient
and increase cost effectiveness in
situations that occur frequently in city
services.
The experiences with the app were
positive. The application was able to
translate Finnish into text and interpret
it into speech well enough in English,
Russian and Arabic. As customer testing
was less extensive than planned due to
the pandemic, the application was also
tested from Finnish into Turkish and
Spanish, contrary to preliminary plans.
The application was taught to interpret
and translate the most frequently
asked questions and answers that arise
in customer service situations related to
HSL travel cards, transport services and
early childhood education. In employment
services, the emphasis in teaching
the app lay in special vocabulary related
to career counselling and the simulation
of customer service situations.
“The fact that the staff committed
themselves to teaching the application
and that native speakers of the language
checked the quality of the translations
was highly significant for the success of
the experiment,” says Programme Director
Marke Kaukonen.
The experiment was carried out
between June 2020 and March 2021
in cooperation with the City of Espoo’s
Employment Services and Customer
Services, Gofore Oy and Microsoft Oy.
The experiment was part of the Espoo
digital agenda’s set of experiments, the
purpose of which is to develop the city’s
services and digital solutions by utilising
new technologies.
Espoo Day
is here again
ESPOO’S largest annual city event,
Espoo Day, will be celebrated once
again all over the city on the last
Saturday of August.
Espoo Day is a celebration for
all the city residents, coordinated
by the City of Espoo’s Event and
Cultural Services. The events of
Espoo Day are organised by local
residents, communities, companies
and various operators.
You can participate
in the Espoo
Day celebrations by
organising an event
yourself or by participating
in events.
All events are free
of charge.
The Espoo Day
team organises training and information
sessions for anyone interested
in arranging an event during
Espoo Day in order to support the
building of the day’s programme.
The training and information sessions
are organised as webinars on
the Teams platform and everyone
is welcome.
› You can register your event for
Espoo Day and find links to the
webinars at espoopaiva.fi
The third application round for business cost support is in progress
THE State Treasury opened
the third application round
for cost support for companies
on Tuesday 27 April.
The application period ends
on 23 June. The cost support
is intended for companies
whose turnover has
decreased by more than 30
per cent due to the pandemic.
The Finnish Government
has issued a Decree on the
industries that may apply for
cost support without further
justification. If the sector
of the company does not
fall within the scope of the
support under the Decree,
it must provide separate
justification for its need for
support and an account of
the decrease in its turnover
resulting from the pandemic.
The Decree applies to the
sectors whose turnover
has decreased by at least
10 per cent during the support
period from 1 November
2020 to 28 February 2021
compared to the corresponding
period in 2019–2020. The
decrease in the company’s
turnover is also compared to
its own turnover in the same
time period in 2019–2020.
6 A magazine for Espoo residents

Don’t forget
to vote in the
municipal
elections
on 13 June.
The rate of population growth in the city was the
greatest in the Greater Leppävaara area which grew by
over 400 people. The Greater Matinkylä and Greater
Tapiola areas grew by more than 100 inhabitants.
Espoo tries out
shared cars
Paid street parking has begun
STREET parking has become subject
to a charge from May in certain
city-owned kerbside parking places
and parking areas in Leppävaara,
Matinkylä and Tapiola. Paid parking
spaces are located in areas close
to the city’s service hubs and traffic
junctions easily accessible by
means of public transport.
Making parking spaces subject
to a charge is one way the city can
steer travel and traffic towards the
set climate targets and is part of
the Espoo Action Plan for Parking in
Public Areas approved by the City
Board.
“The introduction of parking fees
and the digital parking data made
available with it are an important
step forward in developing the city
in a smart and sustainable way,”
says Public Works Director Harri
Tanska.
The parking fees will be in effect
on weekdays between 8:00–20:00
and on Saturdays between 8:00–
18:00. The paid parking spaces have
been divided into two zones: in
zone 1, parking costs €2 per hour
and in zone 2, €1 per hour. The
parking fee is paid by mobile phone
via an app, by text message or by
phone call.
IN cooperation with Omago Oy, the
City of Espoo started a trial of district
cars in Matinkylä, Leppävaara
and Espoon keskus. A district car
means a shared car that you can
use and return to the same area.
Shared cars allow you to give up
your own car or avoid buying one.
Studies show that one shared car
replaces 8 to 25 cars.
“Shared cars are part of a service
package that aims to make travelling
smooth, affordable and environmentally
friendly,” says Project
Manager Mari Päätalo from the City
of Espoo.
The aim of the experiment is
to have so many people using
the service that the district car
will become a permanent system
and expand also to other parts of
Espoo.
The trial is part of the 6Aika Low
Carbon Transport in Mobility Hubs
project funded by the European
Regional Development Fund. Mobility
hubs refer to traffic junctions
where there are various types of
transport services available.
You can become a user of a
district car by signing up as a customer
of the Omago service and
logging in.
The number of applicants in the joint application process increased again
A total of 2,527 applicants with an
Espoo school as their primary choice
applied to the Finnish general upper
secondary schools of the City of
Espoo this spring. Last year, there
were 2,170 applicants which means
that the number of applicants rose by
16.5 per cent.
Tapiolan lukio saw the biggest
increase in the number of applicants
who had indicated the school as their
primary choice. A total of 323 young
people applied to its general programme.
Otaniemen lukio saw the
largest number of applicants overall at
434.
The number of applicants to the
Swedish-speaking Mattlidens gymnasium
remained high. A total of 267
applicants who had indicated the
school as their primary choice applied
to Mattlidens gymnasium.
The number of applicants to
vocational education at Omnia also
increased. Omnia received 1,653 applications
to its vocational programmes this
spring from applicants who had indicated
the school as their primary choice
and 6,825 applications overall. The total
number of applicants was 3,737.
A magazine for Espoo residents 7

theme
A broken ice floe
drifting on waves.
The plan is to
give Leppävaara
a distinctive and
identifiable look.
The renewal work
will take years.
Text Tiina Parikka Photos Mauri Ratilainen
LEPPÄVAARA
i
is the third
busiest railway
station in Finland
in terms of the
rate at which
passengers
change from
one public
transport vehicle
to another. Bus
traffic there is
busier than in
Tikkurila, for
example, where
rail traffic still
exceeds the
traffic volume of
Leppävaara.
A town
within
the city
Located at the junction of Ring Road I
and the Rantarata railway line from
Helsinki to Turku, Leppävaara is the
fastest growing area in Espoo. Due to
its location and excellent transport
connections, it attracts both businesses and
residents from the entire Helsinki metropolitan
area. Leppävaara is the third busiest railway
station in Finland after the Helsinki Central
and Pasila stations.
The Rantarata railway line also divides
Leppävaara in two: the north and south.
Currently dominated by traffic due to the
major traffic routes, its centre serves the
entire Greater Leppävaara area and its 75,000
residents. All this shows that there is a crying
need for change.
“Based on its current growth rate, by 2040
there will be 100,000 people living in the
Greater Leppävaara area. The City Rail Link
and Jokeri Light Rail will only increase the
area’s attractiveness, as transport connections
improve even further,” says Project
Director Mika Rantala.
Up to a quarter of the country’s IT jobs
are concentrated in the Pitäjänmäki–
Leppävaara–Otaniemi–Keilaniemi zone.
“We are the most sought-after location for
SMEs in Espoo. Large companies tend to have
their headquarters in Keilaniemi, but branch
offices and medium-sized enterprises have
settled here,” Rantala says.
Across the bridge. The Leppävaara city
centre is mainly clustered around the Sello
shopping centre south of the railway line. To
Leppävaara has grown into a
centre as big as a medium-sized
Finnish town. The aim is to
turn the district, situated at the
junction of traffic routes, into a
harmonious whole, where moving
from one place to another
is easy and safe also for bicycle
and pedestrian traffic.
the north, the landscape is dominated by an
asphalted parking lot, but according to the
new local detailed plan, this area is designated
for residential buildings, office spaces and a
hotel. Sello’s commercial premises and parking
capacity will be expanding to the south.
“Traffic arrangements are extensive in
such a busy place, but the changes will ensure
a smooth flow of traffic far into the future.
You will be able to cross the railway using the
footbridge in the future in the same way as at
Tikkurila station, and it will take you all the
way to the library,” Rantala says, explaining
the plan.
As these are major structural changes and
temporary solutions will have to be built in
the meantime, this will be a long-term project.
Rantala estimates that the major changes in
the urban centre will be completed in about
ten years.
8 A magazine for Espoo residents

Listening to the residents
ARCHITECT Mika Rantala has been employed as
Project Director of the Greater Leppävaara area since
2014.
Before leading the Leppävaara project, he worked
for six years as a developer for the City of Espoo.
“I switched jobs from an architecture firm to the
city to be able to work in my home town and to
make my commute shorter. As a developer, I was
mainly responsible for the construction of day-care
centres and schools,” Rantala explains.
He tries to actively follow the debate on the area
on social media, to meet residents and to participate
in regional events.
“On the Tehtävä Leppävaarassa Facebook page,
I talk about current events and try to answer residents’
questions. Before the coronavirus, I used to
organise resident meetings in a local café every couple
of weeks. Now these meetings take place online
and a little less frequently,” Rantala says.
Better things in
store. The north side
of the Leppävaara
centre offers parking
for cars. In the
future, it will house
tall residential
and commercial
buildings,” says
Project Manager
Mika Rantala.
A magazine for Espoo residents 9

theme
,, The
construction
will take about eight
years.
A vision of Leppävaara in
the future. New structural
solutions have been added
to the aerial photograph
to demonstrate the plans
for the Leppävaara centre.
The starting point for the
preliminary plans was the
idea of ‘broken ice floes
drifting on waves’. No
particular style or form for
the buildings is specified in
the photograph as yet.
DISCOVERIES
i
have
been made in
Leppävaara of
settlements
dating back to
the Stone Age.
In the sports
park, near the
trail leading to
Karakallio, you
can see a Bronze
Age barrow.
Alberga Manor
was established
in the area in
the 1620s. Its
oldest remaining
building is the
Gransinmäki
Inn built in the
1830s on Vanha
Maantie.
“The construction will take about eight
years. Our goal is to present our proposal for
the alteration of the local detailed plan to the
City Council by the end of this year. Whether
there are any appeals against the plan will
determine how soon we can start work, which
will begin with the renovation of the bus terminal,”
Rantala says.
From one park to another. Leppävaara
is much more than a cluster of traffic routes.
It’s a place where you can sense the presence
of nature and even the seaside is surprisingly
close. The Monikonpuro stream, which runs
through Leppävaara, is an example of the
important role nature also plays in the planning.
“The protected stream is known for its
trout. We have had to temporarily divert the
stream before during construction projects.
Fortunately, previous diversions have proven
successful and have not caused the stream and
its organisms to suffer excessively,” Rantala
assures us.
The area is also known for its excellent sports
facilities.
“We have two golf courses, several riding
stables, the centre of Finnish harness racing
at Vermo Areena and the largest sports park in
Espoo,” Rantala boasts.
The athletics hall, which will be built close
to the sports centre, will further improve the
excellent facilities for training and competition.
It’s no wonder then that Espoo has been
selected as the host for the 2023 European
Athletics U20 Championships.
The construction of the Kameleonten sports
and multipurpose arena will begin in late summer.
The Vermo harness race track to the south
10 A magazine for Espoo residents

Connecting bridge
creates a landmark
Arja Salmi has lived in Leppävaara since the 1970s. During
that time, the district has grown into an urban centre
as big as a medium-sized town.
“The development of Leppävaara's centre is essential
for the district, which serves such a large population.
Right now, the heart of the centre is dominated by cars
and rail transport,” Salmi says.
She hopes that, in the future, the city centre will be
more accessible to pedestrians and that a solution is
discovered for uniting the north and south sides of the
centre, currently separated by roads and the railway line.
“A connecting bridge could serve as a landmark,”
Salmi suggests.
She has been actively following the development
plans in her role of chairperson of the Leppävaara Society.
The society has also actively commented on and
provided proposals for the plans.
“The residents are a very heterogeneous group with
varying needs and wishes. Alterations to the local
detailed plan are, of course, long-term processes. Few
people want to familiarise themselves with plans that
may not be realised until ten years from now,” Salmi
points out.
“What will it be
like to travel
and live here
while major
transportation
systems are
being rebuilt?”
Arja Salmi
wonders.
A magazine for Espoo residents 11

theme
,, The
buildings in
Vermonniitty include
a cluster of ten
16-storey houses.
ONE in
i
four Espoo
residents lives
in the Greater
Leppävaara area.
In other words,
it is the largest
of Espoo’s five
major areas.
In addition to
Leppävaara,
Greater
Leppävaara
includes the
districts of
Karakallio, Kilo,
Laaksolahti,
Lintuvaara,
Lippajärvi,
Sepänkylä and
Viherlaakso.
and the sports centre to the north create an
important pedestrian and bicycle way that
runs through Leppävaara. The City of Espoo is
developing this walkway in cooperation with
the residents. The plan is to highlight different
kinds of places and services that enhance
residents’ lives along this route known as
Leppävaaranraitti.
Distinctive areas. The Leppävaara
district includes Etelä-Leppävaara, Pohjois-
Leppävaara, Mäkkylä and Perkkaa. Each area
has its own distinctive look. Built in the 1970s,
the Perkkaa area represents prefabricated
construction typical of that time. The new, fastgrowing
area of Vermonniitty, which is a part of
Perkkaa, is distinguishable from the older area
by its light colours and tall buildings.
“The buildings in Vermonniitty include, for
example, a cluster of ten 16-storey houses,”
Rantala says.
The adjacent Puustellinmäki is characterised
by its grey-toned brick buildings. The area
is also home to Live Vocational College, which
was completed last year and was awarded the
Hurraa Award by the Espoo Building Control
Committee at the end of last year. The description
given in the award criteria goes as follows:
“The façades of this educational institution
are clad with warm-toned ceramic rolled hollow
sections, and the wood-clad façade on the
courtyard side curves seamlessly into a canopy.”
Built mainly in the 1980s, Pohjois-
Leppävaara is characterised by uniform, smallscale
architecture dominated by red brick.
Etelä-Leppävaara, on the other hand, was
not built until this millennium, which is evident
in its distinctive, vivid look created with
varied colours. Säteri, the southernmost tip
of Etelä-Leppävaara, is complemented by the
Säterinkallionkulma residential area being
built along the Jokeri Light Rail line.
“Construction group Skanska is planning
a city block of wooden apartment buildings
called BoKylä in Mäkkylä. The local detailed
plan for it will be made available for public
review in the near future,” Rantala says. l
An illustration of the
Säterinkallionkulma
planning zone.
Säterinkulma is one of
Leppävaara’s growth
areas.
Architecture firm
Arkkitehtitoimisto Petri
Rouhiainen
12 A magazine for Espoo residents

Juha Saarikoski
returned to familiar
stomping grounds
when he moved
to Leppävaara a
couple of years
ago. “Everything is
close by here, both
nature and services.
When you know
the area and its
problems, you can
avoid unpleasant
surprises.”
Excellent future prospects
Juha Saarikoski moved to Vermonniitty
a couple of years ago. Some of the key
factors influencing his choice of location
were the modernisation plans and
the excellent location.
“I used to live in a building in
Helsinki built at the beginning of the
20th century. I wanted to move to a
newer building with modern technical
building services. Compared to
the centre of Helsinki, the price level
in Leppävaara was appealing, and
it is quick and easy to get to work
from here – and commuting will get
even better in the future,” Saarikoski
explains.
Saarikoski is no stranger to Espoo
or the Leppävaara area as he knows
them from his childhood and has also
worked in the area.
“Everything is close by in Leppävaara,
both services and nature. On
the one hand, you have great trails
for outdoor recreation and, on the
other, Sello’s services,” Saarikoski says,
describing his living environment.
Saarikoski, who works with young
people, hopes that the changes being
made will include opportunities for
various hobbies, both in and around
the centre.
“Young people will gather there
in any case, so it would be better to
provide them with something positive
to do. General cleanliness also affects
the atmosphere and community spirit.”
A magazine for Espoo residents 13

at your service
In this section of
the magazine, you
will meet employees
and close
partners of the
City of Espoo.
Text Juha Peltonen Photo Eemeli Sarka
The only one
in Finland
Kimmo Leinonen, who has recently been
hired as an esports planner for Espoo Sports
Services, has no colleagues in Finland.
”
As a form of competition using
digital games, electronic sports
– commonly known as esports
– is an issue that cuts across all
levels of society. Considering
the phenomenon occurs everywhere, it is a
good idea to have someone around who has
an overall picture of it. It means that we can
utilise each other’s resources at city level.
My place in the city’s organisation is
within Sports Services; a fact that will probably
cause a lot of raised eyebrows. A part
of my work involves mapping things from
the point of view of sports services, but I’m
also involved in developing youth services.
Especially during the coronavirus pandemic,
a lot of youth work is performed online. I
provide my colleagues with tips on how best
to do it and support them by establishing
contacts with national and international
operators.
There are many companies in Espoo that
are interested in esports, but they don’t necessarily
share a network with other companies
in the industry. In cases like that, I
do what the city’s Economic Development
Services do: I bring companies and operators
together.
My bachelor’s degree in business management
comes in useful in situations like this,
as esports was created mainly for commercial
purposes. All games are someone’s property
and sold digitally. There is more money
in the video game industry globally than in
the film and music business combined.
Espoo has taken a step towards normalising
gaming. After all, no city claims that all
gaming is dangerous, although they generally
don’t openly support gaming. In a way,
this is Espoo’s way of saying that it understands
and accepts that the world is changing
and that it wants to be a part of this change.
This is work for building the future.
Esports
“Gamification can
already be seen in
the city’s operations
in many contexts:
in teaching, youth
work and economic
development
services. There has
also been a lot of
discussion about
the opportunities
it brings from the
perspective of marketing
the city,” says
Esports Planner
Kimmo Leinonen.
› Electronic sports, or esports, is
a form of competition that utilises
information technology.
› Played in teams or as individuals,
depending on the game.
› The most common esports games
are entertainment games played on
a computer or console and they are
divided into several genres.
› More than 80,000 Finns play esports
games actively (statistics for 2018).
seul.fi
14 A magazine for Espoo residents

15 In situ 16 Things to do 19 Exercise tip
Things to do
in Espoo
Events and
activities
from June to
August.
Ship ahoy!
The archipelago boats are back,
running from the beginning of
June to the end of August.
More detailed route
schedules can be
found at:
espoo.fi/
saaristoliikenne
Tickets
› Adults €6, round trip €12.
› Under 18-year-olds and special
groups €3, round trip €6.
› Children under 7 travel
free with a paying adult.
› People with a +68 sports
wristband travel free.
› Archipelago friend: A person using
the +68 sports wristband can take
an adult friend along on scheduled
routes free of charge.
› From Suomenoja, Nokkala and
Haukilahti to Vasikkasaari, and
from Kivenlahti, Ristiniemi, Soukka,
Suinonsalmi and Suomenoja to
Pentala the price for a round trip is
€3 for children and €6 for adults.
› On Midsummer Eve, archipelago
boats operate according to the
normal schedule.
PLEASE NOTE! HSL travel cards are
not accepted on archipelago boats.
Want to join your friend in
the archipelago?
Would you like to be an
archipelago friend? Would you
be my archipelago friend?
The +68 sports wristband provides
free access to an archipelago boat.
The holder of a wristband can now
bring along, free of charge, an archipelago
friend who must be any adult.
Kivenlahti
Stensvik
Stora Herrö
Ristiniemi
Soukka
Pentala
Herrö
SOUKKA
SÖKÖ
Kaparen
Suomenoja
Finno
Suinonsalmi
Svinösund
Rövaren
Suvisaaristo
Sommaröarna
Rövargrundet
Rövaren
Archipelago boats
are cruising along
Espoo’s shores again
this summer. They
run their scheduled
routes from Tuesday
to Sunday from 5
June to 8 August
and after that on
weekends until the
end of August.
MATINKYLÄ
MATTBY
Nokkala
Vasikkasaari
Gåsgrundet
Knapperskär
WESTEND
Haukilahti
Gäddvik
Iso Vasikkasaari
Stora Kalvholmen
Torra Lövö
Gåsgrundet
Otaniemi
Otnäs
TAPIOLA
HAGALUND
Tvijälp
Korkeasaari
Högholm
A magazine for Espoo residents 15

Things to do
in Espoo
✱
Music • Visual arts ♥ Theatre ✘ For children ✓ Cinema = Espoo ♦ Something else
The kulttuuriespoo.fi website presents
information about cultural events in Espoo
and Espoo-based cultural operators.
On the day of the end-of-year ceremony at
schools on 5 June, we celebrate the beginning
of the summer with the 182 km Apart –
Summer Edition live stream event.
Mapped walking
routes =
URBAN walks are mapped routes
introducing you to a neighbourhood’s
history and the present and to its nature,
culture, public art, architecture as well as
prominent people. The routes are suitable
for new Espoo residents and those who
have lived in the city for longer, for Sunday
walkers and explorers alike.
kotikaupunkipolut.fi/en
Explore the Waterfront
Walkway =
ALONG the Waterfront Walkway, you will
find nearly a hundred fascinating sites
that reveal aspects of Espoo’s nature,
cultural history and buildings, as well as
its coastal history. You can download the
Citynomadi app on your mobile phone to
find interesting sites on your walk along
the Waterfront Walkway. By entering the
search term Espoo Waterfront Walkway,
the app will show a route for walking,
one for cycling and wheelchair-accessible
sections.
To download the mobile app go
to app.citynomadi.com.
Outdoor escape game
– spend time outdoors ✘
URBAN Matinkylä and Urban Tapiola are
free outdoor escape games played with a
smartphone or tablet. They require quick
wits and good teamwork. The outdoor
escape game takes you on a tour of
Matinkylä and Tapiola, while you solve
problems. In addition to downloading the
free Actionbound app from an app store,
you need one mobile device and between
1 and 4 players.
Further information: urbanespoo.fi
Haukilahti
Poetry Trail =
THE Haukilahti Poetry Trail will immerse
you in a harmonious atmosphere with the
help of Finnish national poets and the
landscape. Put your headphones on and
open Google Maps on your mobile phone
to see suggestions on where to stop, then
take a deep breath and listen to the poem
selected for the site. The poetry trail
starts from the rocks of Haukilahti and
runs along the shoreline via the Westend
beach towards the Haukilahti beach. The
poems are recited by Inkeri Kivimäki.
urbanespoo.fi/sisalto/haukilahden-runoreitti
Urban Tapiola is the newest game in
the series of outdoor escape games.
Landscape and poetry come
together on the Haukilahti Poetry Trail.
1 2 3 4 5 6
VIEW
Mini school:
architecture
bit.ly/
Minikoulu1
VIEW
Mini school:
ballet
bit.ly/
Minikoulu2
VIEW
Mini school:
cartoon strips
bit.ly/
Minikoulu3
VIEW
Mini school:
circus
bit.ly/
Minikoulu4
VIEW
Mini school:
photography
bit.ly/
Minikoulu5
LISTEN
Hans Rosenström:
In Dependent
Structures
bit.ly/
Kaikenosana
16 A magazine for Espoo residents

You can now explore EMMA’s
versatile museum collection also
via Finna at emma.finna.fi.
For more tips see:
espoo.fi/
tapahtumat
Pentala Archipelago
Museum is open from
5 June to 29 August.
Workshops of the Children’s Virtual
Museum Festival found online.
Ella Tommila / EMMA
Ilona Niemi’s work Personae
mythologicae in front of WeeGee.
The space odyssey
continues ✘
ALTHOUGH the Children’s Virtual Museum
Festival and festival broadcasts are over,
the space odyssey goes on. Have a look at
WeeGee’s workshop videos, which are now
available for free for all space travellers. At
the workshops, you can use items found at
home. You can photograph your toy taking
a gravity-free space flight, hear a moving
tale and gaze at the stars with a selfmade
telescope. The workshop videos are
subtitled in Finnish, Swedish and English.
emmamuseum.fi
Construction site
art at WeeGee •
ILONA Niemi’s artwork Personae
Mythologicae is on display in a fence
surrounding a construction site in front
of the Exhibition Centre WeeGee. Niemi’s
work of art is based on Finnish mythology
and consists of 28 creatures divided into
four groups according to the seasons
and the four elements – air, earth, fire
and water. The work highlights slightly
less known mythological creatures with
a modern twist: the animal and human
figures and their genders are not clearly
delineated.
Outdoor art
in Kera •
AT Keran Hallit, Inex’s gigantic former
logistics centre, and its surroundings
you can enjoy outdoor art every day.
Keran Hallit is home to the Kerakollektiivi
collective, whose operations
started with art projects in spring 2020.
First, they created art on the fences
surrounding the site and gradually art
began to appear all over the area. To
find out about their latest works, go to
Kera-kollektiivi’s Facebook or Instagram
page.
kerakollektiivi.fi
Inspiring
metro ride =
LÄNSIMETRO stations are full of
interesting architectural details.
Take an inspiring metro ride and
focus your attention on the stations’
aesthetics using the online guide at
urbanespoo.fi. The online guide presents
the architecture of the metro stations
from the Matinkylä station all the way to
Lauttasaari.
7 8 9 10 11 12
VIEW
Document:
114 ovea
(114 doors)
bit.ly/
114-ovea
VIEW
Mika Taanila
– Futuron maailma
(The World of
Futuro)
bit.ly/
Futuron-maailma
LISTEN
Hevosenkenkä:
Theatre:
Satutuokiot
(Fairy Tales)
bit.ly/
Satutuokiot
VIEW
Documentary
series: Taiteen lyhyt
oppimäärä
(Introduction to Art)
bit.ly/
Taiteen-lyhytoppimaara
LISTEN
Hevosenkenkä:
Theatre:
Radio play Kani
Untuvakerä
bit.ly/
Kani-untuvakera
LISTEN
Pirita Tolvanen:
Paroni
(Baron)
bit.ly/
Pirita-tolvanen
A magazine for Espoo residents 17

Things to do
in Espoo
✱
Music • Visual arts ♥ Theatre ✘ For children ✓ Cinema = Espoo ♦ Something else
Ari Karttunen / EMMA
Ella Tommila / EMMA
Check out the mobile guide for the
exhibition Ceramics Facing the New.
Eeva-Leena Eklund is revising
the concept of painting.
Aaron Heino makes use
of pop art imagery.
Träskända
stories =
HISTORY and the area’s diverse nature
meet on the Träskända Stories Trail.
This self-directed trail takes you
through the Träskända Manor’s park and
forest along your chosen route, while
you complete a set of tasks. The tasks
reveal new perspectives on Träskända’s
history, the area’s nature and the lives
of people from the past, especially
during the lifetime of the well-known
philanthropist Aurora Karamzin in the
19th century. The self-directed trail is
suitable for all ages.
urbanespoo.fi/sisalto/
tarinoiden-traskanda
Creative
drawing ♦
YOU can take part in Exhibition Centre
WeeGee’s popular workshop Luova
piirustus (Creative Drawing, taught in
Finnish) also without leaving home.
Explore the world that reveals itself as
your draw and familiarise yourself with
the basics of drawing. The workshop
is made up of videos that approach
drawing from different points of
view. The episodes explore drawing
and measuring through shapes and
shadows. The workshop is taught by art
teacher Tero Hytönen.
urbanespoo.fi/sisalto/luova-piirustus
Body and mind ♦
YOGA is good for the body and the mind
and brings balance to your busy life.
Naomi’s hatha yoga class is suitable for
yoga enthusiasts of all levels. Breathing
and the cooperation between the mind
and the body are key in yoga. Hatha
yoga is a calmer type of yoga that uses
movement to help you find a balanced
state for both your body and mind.
urbanespoo.fi/sisalto/joogaa-naominkanssa
Concert experiences
without leaving home ✱
URBAN Espoo’s Lava offers digital
concert experiences for those hungry
for music. Check out its changing
repertoire and choose an event that
interests you at urbanespoo.fi/lava and
enjoy the experience.
Eeva-Leena Eklund’s
art at EMMA •
THE Eeva-Leena Eklund:) exhibition
continues the collaboration between
the Saastamoinen Foundation and
EMMA which involves commissioning a
new piece of art for the Foundation’s art
collection every year from an interesting
and topical contemporary artist. Eeva-
Leena Eklund implements a new,
extensive installation for the exhibition,
designed for EMMA’s space and
architecture. The exhibition is curated
by artist Anna Tuori.
Ceramics
Facing the New •
THE idea underlying the Ceramics Facing
the New exhibition is kintsugi, the
Japanese tradition of mending broken
pottery with gold or another metal.
Instead of concealing the damage,
kintsugi seeks to establish a new
relationship with it. Created by twelve
artists and two artist groups, the works
featured in the exhibition use ceramic
art to explore the juncture of past
and future, one that is characterised
by environmental concern and the
disintegration of social structures. The
extensive mobile guide to the exhibition
features background information and
interview videos.
emmamuseum.fi
Aaron Heino:
Off Topic •
THIS summer, EMMA will feature Off
Topic, a solo exhibition by sculptor
Aaron Heino, the recipient of the Fine
Arts Academy of Finland Prize in 2019.
Heino’s dynamic sculptures play with
the tension between masculine and
feminine, combining it with imagery
borrowed from pop culture. In Heino’s
art, classic materials of sculpture, such
as marble and granite, meet steel,
glass fibre and painted aluminium.
The exhibition at EMMA will consist
primarily of the artist’s new works.
EMMA, 2 June – 12 December
18 A magazine for Espoo residents

Fitness enthusiasts
have already started
using the latest
fitness training park
in Westend.
Fitness training in the park
Outdoor exercise equipment can be found at sports facilities, in parks and along fitness
trails. The City’s easy-to-use and safe exercise equipment is also suitable for beginners.
Exercise in Espoo
Fitness training
parks in Espoo
• Espoonlahti Sports Park
• Hansavalkama ball field
• Iso Vasikkasaari
• Kalajärvi, Metsämaa
outdoor field
• Kauklahti outdoor field
• Keski-Espoo Sports Park
• Kivenlahti beach
• Laaksolahti Sports Park
• Laurinlahti beach Tyrsky
• Leppävaara Sports
Park, at the stadium
scoreboard end
• Leppävaara Sports Park
• Oittaa Recreation Area
• Otaniemi outdoor field
• Puolarmaari
Recreation Area
• Soukka, Klobben beach
• Tapiola, shopping
centre Ainoa
• Tapiola Sports Park
• Uusmäki outdoor field
• Westend outdoor field,
Hiiralantie junction
There are currently 19 outdoor
gyms in use in Espoo.
The next fitness training
park will be built in the area
of the Leppävaara swimming
hall and lido. In addition, we will further
develop the outdoor fitness area
of the Tapiola Sports Park and the
Leppävaara Kuntokontti area.
“We are also looking for a suitable
place for a fitness training park in
Northern Espoo,” says Manager Jari
Järvi.
The newest outdoor fitness park is
located in Westend at the Hiiralantie
junction and is over 100 square metres
in size.
“At the Westend fitness training
park, we used stainless steel as the
material for the moving shafts. It is
more durable and makes adjusting the
weight pack easier too.
Our outdoor gyms vary in size
and number of fitness devices.
Depending on its size, a fitness training
park has between 8 and 20 pieces of
equipment.
The general rules for fitness facilities
can be found on information boards at
the park in three languages. There is no
supervision or guidance in the parks,
and people using the outdoor gym
equipment do so at their own risk. The
gym equipment is intended for people
over 140 centimetres tall.
The information boards also provide
instructions on how to give feedback if
a user notices any faults, problems or
acts of vandalism on the devices.
“We hope people will give us feedback,
so that we will be able to repair
any damage quickly. We carry out large
annual maintenance tasks at least
twice a year and whenever necessary.
In addition, Espoo Sports Services have
their own patrol that regularly inspects
all fitness training parks.
Instructions for use are included
on the side of the equipment. In
addition, there is a QR code you can
use to access a video for instructions
on how to use the equipment. The fitness
training parks are designed for the
training of the main muscle groups.
“If you have no previous experience
of working out at a gym, make sure you
start slowly and gradually increase the
number of times you repeat an exercise
and how often you use the park. Our
gym equipment is safe and easy to use
and I encourage everyone to try our
fitness training parks,” Järvi says.
Fitness training
parks have grown
in popularity
during the
pandemic. They
are constantly
being modernised
and new
equipment is
added.
Teksti Mia Weckström Kuva Eemeli Sarka
A magazine for Espoo residents 19

ight now
After a year of
coronavirus, the
unemployment
rate in Espoo is
11.5 per cent, while
it was 8.1 per cent
for the whole
country at the end
of February.
Text Terhi Pääskylä-Malmström Photo Timo Porthan
Launched in March, the Finnish
municipal employment experiment
strengthens the role of
municipalities as organisers of
employment services. In Espoo,
the organisation carrying out the experiment
is simply called Employment
Espoo.
“In Espoo, all unemployed jobseekers
who are not entitled to earnings-related
daily allowance, who are under 30 years
old or speak a foreign language as their
their mother tongue have been transferred
to the new system or are in the
process of being transferred,” says Hilla-
Maaria Sipilä, the City of Espoo’s Head of
Employment Services.
For the duration of the experiment,
the municipality is responsible for
providing employment and economic
development services to selected target
groups. Previously, jobseekers in Espoo
were served by the Uusimaa TE Office.
“Services that promote employment
will not change as such, but it
will become easier and faster to access
them. In addition, the municipality can
offer a wide range of educational, social
and health services from its extensive
range of services according according
to the client’s needs in order to ensure
a smooth path towards employment.
Through our cooperation network of
employers, we may also find employers
in need of workers,” Sipilä says.
“Every jobseeker has a personal coach
who, during their joint meetings, maps
out the jobseeker’s situation and guides
them in a holistic way towards work or
education.”
A city of highly educated immigrants.
The aim of the municipal
employment experiment is to improve
access to work, education and other services.
At the same time, it seeks to tackle
the causes of long-term unemployment,
among other things.
“More and more personalised solutions
are needed for employment,
because the causes of unemployment
are increasingly diverse,” Sipilä explains.
Of the 18,000 jobseekers who have
been transferred to tthe municipal
experiment in Espoo, 5,000 are aged
under 30, while 9,000 speak a language
other than Finnish or Swedish as their
first language. ›
Effective job hunting
the Finnish municipal employment experiment is to
tackle employment problems more vigorously than ever.
In Espoo, 18,000 jobseekers are participating in the
experiment.
20 A magazine for Espoo residents

”
More and more
personalised solutions
are needed for
employment.
A magazine for Espoo residents 21

Hilla-Maaria
Sipilä, the City
of Espoo’s Head
of Employment
Services,
believes in the
effectiveness
of individual
guidance in
job hunting.
“The causes of
unemployment
are increasingly
diverse,” she
points out.
Do you need
employment services?
› Please use e-services
whenever possible.
Register as a jobseeker in
TE Services’ Oma asiointi service
at asiointi.mol.fi/omaasiointi.
› For advice on practical matters, call
Employment Espoo’s telephone
service at 09 8169 4000
(Mon–Fri 9–16) or send an
e-mail to info.tyo@espoo.fi.
› During the coronavirus
pandemic, we recommend
visiting the Service Point at
Upseerinkatu 3B (Mon–Fri 9–16)
for essential services only.
› If you are already a customer of
the TE Office and are included
in the municipal experiment
you will receive a personal
notification of the transfer
of your customer account to
Employment Espoo.
Read more: tyollisyysespoo.fi/en
“A distinctive feature of Espoo is the
number of highly educated jobseekers
who speak a foreign language as their
mother tongue, and we currently serve
approximately 2,800 of them. In total,
nearly 5,000 Employment Espoo clients
have a university degree,” Sipilä says.
The coronavirus has also had an
effect on the employment situation
in Espoo. According to statistics for
January, unemployment has increased
among young people, foreign-born people
and the long-term unemployed.
Unemployment in Espoo rose by almost
four percentage points from the same
time last year – it now represents 11.5 per
cent of the city’s total workforce.
“Young people are graduating only to
find themselves unemployed, the service
sector is struggling and lay-offs are
threatening to turn into unemployment.
Competition for jobs is fierce during the
coronavirus pandemic, which makes
it even more difficult for the long-term
unemployed to find work,” Sipilä says.
“At the same time, some employers
in Espoo don’t have enough workforce.
Demand and supply do not meet, and
that’s where the experiment will hopefully
come into its own.”
The experiment is expected to continue
until the summer of 2023.
“We hope this will become a permanent
model. From a client’s point of view,
it improves our services and access to
them.”
Work for a doctor. One of the
people to have found a job through
Employment Espoo is Aurora, who
moved to Finland some 20 years ago. She
is happy about her new job, but due to
the nature of her work, prefers to use her
nickname for in this article.
“Finding work in my own field has
been challenging, which is why I have
had long periods of unemployment,”
says Aurora who graduated with a doctorate
from Aalto University.
“I was considered over-educated for
many jobs and, unfortunately, a foreign
name is not always an advantage when
looking for a job. I was an oddball at the
TE Office, and no one knew where to
direct me to get help.”
After participating in Espoo’s international
Talent Boost mentoring programme,
Aurora was one of the first
to become a client of Employment
Espoo. She was assigned Kateriina
Hozjajenok, a career counsellor working
at the Competence Centre for Highly
Educated Immigrants, as her personal
coach. Together, they mapped out a
suitable job description for Aurora and
worked on her job-hunting skills.
“Aurora was a motivated jobseeker
who only needed a little guidance and
fine-tuning of her application process,”
Hozjajenok says.
After that, it didn’t take long for
Aurora to find a job.
“Personal coaching provided me
with a lot of additional information
and tips for finding a job.It helped me
find employment in my own field very
quickly, find employment in my own
field,” Aurora says.
”
Services will become
easier and faster to
access.
22 A magazine for Espoo residents

A variety of topics
The discussions organised weekly by the Espoo City Museum
have focused, for example, on identifying old photographs of
Espoo and looking back at housing in the 1950s. These online
discussions will continue throughout the summer.
encounters
› Known as Museolehtorin Salonki (Museum
Educator’s Salon), these meaningful meetings
via Teams have been organised for city
residents also during the exceptional circumstances
brought on by the coronavirus. The
second discussion in March focused on the
identity of Espoo residents.
“In my youth in the early 1970s, there were
no ‘Espoo people’ as a group. Instead, there
were, for example, people from Tapiola,
Haukilahti and Kauniainen. A major change
towards a single, distinct Espoo identity took
place in 1992, when the men’s ice hockey team
Kiekko-Espoo made it into the Finnish Elite
League,” says Jari ”Hirkka” Hirvonen who
has lived in Tapiola all his life.
Museum Educator Tiina Hero says that
those who participated in the discussion
believe that the proximity of nature and the sea
and the availability of clubs for various hobbies
are key factors in the current identity of Espoo
residents.
“Also, there is not just one, but many urban
centres of equal importance in Espoo. This is
generally perceived as a positive thing,” she adds.
The Museum Educator’s Salon discussions
will continue in Teams until further notice,
in the summer months organised in part by
the Glims Farmstead Museum and Pentala
Archipelago Museum, and may be continued
even after normal opening times resume.
“It’s definitely worth continuing these discussions.
I have a feeling this may lead to a
great community and a popular forum where
people can talk about local issues. We need
something like that,” Hirkka says.
More information:
kulttuuriespoo.fi/en/kaupunginmuseo ›
events and tiina.hero@espoo.fi
Virtual meetings
at the Espoo City
Museum offer an
opportunity to
discuss the city’s
cultural heritage
from different
perspectives.
Text Matti Välimäki
Photos Jaakko Vuorenmaa
Tiina Hero and
Jari Hirvonen
discussed
Espoo’s identity
at the Museum
Educator’s Salon,
i.e. the online
meeting known
as Museolehtorin
Salonki.
A magazine for Espoo residents 23

pearl
New nature
reserves are
established in
Espoo almost
every year. There
are currently
almost a
hundred of them,
encompassing
more than 4,000
hectares in total.
Text Mia Weckström Photo Eemeli Sarka
Vanttila’s Toad
Gate welcomes
visitors to the
forest. The
impressive gate
in Central Park
was created by
metal artisan
Samuli Pohjola.
24 A magazine for Espoo residents

Explore nature
destinations
The revised fourth edition of
Kotinurkilta kallioille – Espoon luontokohteet,
a guidebook to Espoo’s nature
destinations, has been published. The
book introduces some 300 valuable
and protected nature sites through
words, photographs and maps. New
destinations have been added to the
revised edition, boundaries have been
reviewed, maps have been revised and
photographs updated.
The book presents Espoo’s nature
reserves, natural monuments, geological
sites and old cultural landscapes.
One of the sites is the 880-hectare
Central Park in the middle of Espoo, the
second largest continuous nature area
in the city after Nuuksio National Park.
Sites located close to people’s
homes are best admired from further
away to avoid disturbing the residents.
In addition, many nature destinations
have delicate vegetation, which is why
it is advisable to avoid walking in the
most sensitive areas and walk along
the paths instead.
Buy your copy here:
bit.ly/luontokirja
A magazine for Espoo residents 25

espoo people
Many of the area’s
residents come from
families that have
lived in Suvisaaristo
for several
generations. Only a
few new households
a year move to the
archipelago.
Text Tapio Rusanen Photo Timo Porthan
In a recent online survey by Ilta-Sanomat and
based on information from various official sources,
Espoo´s Suvisaaristo was selected as the most
pleasant residential area in Finland. In particular,
people value the sense of security and the amount
of living space in Suvisaaristo.
A seaside jewel
Detached houses with spacious,
maritime garden plots – an
idyllic setting where people
used to make a living by fishing,
hunting and small-scale farming.
Suvisaaristo has gradually changed
since those days, and the last commercial
fisherman retired in the 1980s.
The area was subject to a ban on building
for a long time in the 1970s due to
unfinished urban planning and has not
been very densely built even after that.
The wooded shores have slowly turned
into villa plots.
Many residents come from families
that have lived in Suvisaaristo for
several generations. In the 1950s, all
but two of the residents were Swedishspeaking,
but today less than 40 per cent
of the area’s permanent residents speak
Swedish as their mother tongue.
“Change is slow, and older residents
like me may even be a little bit scared
of change. New black glass houses have
gradually replaced the old wooden ones
painted falu red,” says Stig-Olof ‘Oa’
Sjöberg, who has lived in Suvisaaristo all
his life.
“Fortunately, there are some who
have renovated houses dating back to the
last century when a new generation has
moved into the family home. That is a true
cultural act!”
Community spirit is strong in
Suvisaaristo, proven by the fact that
there are nine registered residents’
associations in the area.
Oa Sjöberg’s family ran the village shop
from the 1920s to 2012, when Kristina
Tukiainen took over the shop known as
Saaristokauppa. Oa himself started working
next door to the shop at Seabergs Oy
Ab, a company that makes floating marinas.
He lives on the island on a fisherman’s
estate that his family acquired in 1910.
“I never felt the need to leave,” 67-yearold
Oa laughs.
Luckily for him and the other residents,
all the services they need are fairly
close. It’s only a short distance from
Suvisaaristo’s seascapes to an urban environment.
For example, it only takes 15–20
minutes by bus to get to Matinkylä.
“One thing I would like to see happen
in Suvisaaristo is a solution to the Bergö
component master plan,” says Oa Sjöberg.
Suvisaaristo /
Sommaröarna
• The name came
about in 1920 when the
village was renamed
Sommaröarna after the
Stor-Svinö, Lill-Svinö
and Moisö farms were
merged.
• Approximately 640
year-round residents,
though most of the
area’s building stock
consists of summer
cottages.
• A maritime district,
it is an archipelago in
front of Soukanniemi, a
cape that extends into
the Gulf of Finland.
• Islands with access
by road: Bergö,
Furuholm, Moisö,
Ramsö, Skataholmen,
Svartholm and Suino
(known as Svinö in
Swedish). In addition,
the group of islands
includes about forty
islands without a
bridge, such as Pentala
and the Kytö fortress
islands.
Slow progress in urban planning
People living in Suvisaaristo
have been waiting for the Bergö
component master plan to
be completed for about forty
years. The plan would enable
additional construction in the
Stakaudd area mainly for yearround
housing.
On 10 September 2020, the
Helsinki Administrative Court
overturned the decision of the
Espoo City Council to approve
the Bergö component master
plan.
“The idea behind it was
mainly to ensure sites to build
a house on for the descendants
of land owners, for example,”
says Area Architect Christian
Ollus of Espoo.
“It is now down to the
Supreme Administrative Court
to decide. The ELY Centre
required a local detailed plan
to be drawn up, but that would
require the construction of
municipal engineering services,
which is not in the city’s interest.”
Preparation of the proposal
for a three-part component
master plan for the Espoo
archipelago is also still ongoing.
In Suvisaaristo, it would
apply to the islands of Pentala
and Stora Herrö. According to
Architect Paula Kangasperko,
Espoo’s town planning efforts
are currently focused on the
metro and northern and
northeastern Espoo.
“The completion of the
plans for the archipelago is
expected to take at least until
2023,” Kangasperko says.
26 A magazine for Espoo residents

Oa Sjöberg received the Espoo
Medal in 2018 after distinguishing
himself by improving residents’
access to outdoor recreation facilities:
when his wife started tour
skating all the way to Lake Tuusulanjärvi
a few years ago, Oa began
clearing the snow and maintaining
the six-kilometre-long Moisönfjärden
local recreational ice track
in the winter.
A magazine for Espoo residents 27

Swedish in Espoo
Once Kameleonten
is completed,
Leppävaara sports
park will be one of
the most versatile
sports centres in
Finland.
Kameleonten
is part of
Leppävaara’s
reform that will
strengthen the
city’s position as
a major sports
concentration.
Text Sebastian Dahlström Bilder Arkitektbyrån HARC
Kameleonten
due for
completion in
two years
Project Manager Patrik Gustafsson can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The planning of the Kameleonten sports hall has been delayed
multiple times, but this year, on 20 April, the project took a major
leap forward with the signing of the construction loan guarantees.
28 A magazine for Espoo residents

It’s truly fantastic news! We can breathe
a little easier now,” says Project Manager
Patrik Gustafsson.
It was established some time ago that
the City of Espoo would guarantee a
loan of just over EUR 25 million to finance
the Kameleonten sports hall.
“However, the formal decision-making
has been a long and drawn-out process.
The project has been on pause while
we’ve been waiting for the financing,” says
Gustafsson.
Next step: building permit. With the
loan guarantees now signed, work can once
again get going. The next step will be submitting
the building permit application,
followed by putting the construction work
out to tender, after which building work
can begin.
“We haven’t reached the finish line yet,
but we are aiming to pour the foundations
this autumn.
The Kameleonten sports hall, which is
to be built next to the Leppävaara stadium,
will need to be completed by summer 2023,
prior to the 2023 European Athletics U23
Championships.
“Espoo has submitted its bid to host
the championships, so appropriate facilities
that meet international standards are
required,” Gustafsson explains.
Kameleonten will feature four ball
courts, a hall with gymnastics equipment,
and a 200-metre running track.
While the original cost estimate for
Kameleontti was a little over EUR 26 million,
it suddenly came to light that it would,
in fact, be considerably more expensive.
This is because the earlier cost calculations
were not accurate.
The original plan was for the hall to be
Z-shaped, with lots of different corners, but
the new drawings show tshow a simpler
L-shaped layout..
“The solution we adopted here was to
reduce the number of square metres. We
have kept the sports spaces, but the social
areas will be smaller,” says Gustafsson.
Behind the construction project is the
youth association Logen i Gröndahl UF.
”
Kameleonten will
feature four ball courts,
a hall with gymnastics
equipment, and a
200-metre running
track.
According to Patrik Gustafsson, the idea for
the hall came about from the association’s
desire to reinvent itself.
“To some extent, traditional youth associations
have had their day. Selling the association’s
current plot and replacing it with
Kameleonten allows us to reinvent ourselves
and create new sports opportunities
for young people in the area.”
29

us
Cyclist’s Espoo
Espoo has
more than 100
city bike stations
where you can
pick up a bike to
use from spring to
autumn.
Espoo has almost
600 kilometres of
cycling routes in
total. The themed
cycling routes of
Visit Espoo serve
city residents and
tourists alike.
Culture
7.2 km
From Tapiola via
Otaniemi to Keilaniemi.
On the way back, you
can visit Kino Tapiola
and explore the Tapiola
Church.
Crossword
puzzle
Test your
Finnish with this
crossword puzzle!
Book prizes!
Sea
9 km
A safe route for the
whole family with
beautiful seaside views.
You can hop onboard
an archipelago boat in
Haukilahti or at
Mellsten beach.
Nature
17.5 km
Starting from the
Bemböle Coffeehouse,
this route offers beautiful
sights and lovely resting
areas. Along the way,
you can stop for coffee,
barbecue or take a swim.
Workout
53 km
Along Kuninkaantie and
the Waterfront Walkway.
The perfect route for
challenging yourself, or
cycling just a part of the
route while enjoying the
scenery and sights.
Write the letters from the orange boxes (1–14) below and send the answer with
your name and address by e-mail to espoolehti@omnipress.fi by 31 July 2021.
Goes Helsinki
20 km
A maritime
route from Espoo
to Helsinki and
back along
excellent bicycle
paths.
30 A magazine for Espoo residents

The economic benefits
of the five largest football
clubs in Espoo amount to
over EUR 20 million. The
same amount of money
is saved in health costs,
plus the social benefits
generated that are worth
more than EUR 8.5 million.
These figures are based on
UEFA’s modelling of the
benefits of football.
Valuable activity
Club activities for the individual and society result
in health, economic and social benefits.
Between 5 and 6 million sports sessions
are carried out annually by sports clubs in
Espoo. Before the coronavirus pandemic,
the city’s sports clubs had 45,000 members.
More than half of the children in
Espoo are involved in some sports club activities.
“From the city’s point of view, these are activities
of enormous importance,” says Martti Merra,
Director of Sports and Youth Services.
The health effects of physical activities are undeniable,
and not only for physical health. Being
involved in club activities also provides support, a
sense of togetherness and, at best, self-confidence
through achievement.
“It’s difficult to verify how big a role a hobby plays,
but in my case, for example, it helped me grow from
a withdrawn young man into a responsible adult,”
Merra says.
All club activities have the same positive
effect, but sport is well ahead of other hobbies.
‘The Finnish model’, created in cooperation
between Espoo´s Sports Services and clubs, gives all
young people the opportunity to start a hobby.
“The costs of a hobby are prohibitive for many
families. One in five children and young people in
Espoo would be excluded from hobbies if we didn’t
have a free hobby path,” Merra says.
There are a total of 150 free or very affordable
hobby groups.
“The clubs organise the activities and the city pays
the costs. Our motto is that everyone has the right to
opportunities,” Merra says.
The city also supports club operators by allocating
facilities for their use for a nominal fee and by
offering clubs various types of grants worth EUR 3.5
million annually.
The benefits are not easy to measure.
However, modelling has been carried out in in
relation to football in an effort to measure the
social return on the capital invested in the sport.
The UEFA SROI modelling (Social Return on
Investment) has involved football clubs from 12
European countries, including the largest football
clubs in Espoo. FC Honka, Espoon Palloseura,
Leppävaaran Pallo, FC Espoo, Etelä-Espoon Pallo
and Kasiysi keep more than 5,000 children and
young people moving on a weekly basis, with nearly
1,200 volunteers of different ages involved in their
activities.
In accordance with the UEFA SROI model, the
total benefits produced by Espoo football clubs to to
society amount to almost EUR 50 million per year.
together
Espoo has more
than 300 sports
clubs for some
90 sports.
Text Tiina Parikka Photo FC Honka
A magazine for Espoo residents 31

IS IT YOUR TURN TO GET
THE CORONAVIRUS VACCINE?
espoo.fi/coronavaccination
Coronavirus vaccinations are
well under way in Espoo. We
recommend that everyone get
vaccinated. The coronavirus
vaccinations will bring us
closer to normal life and each
other.
The vaccines provide protection
against the coronavirus disease
and its symptoms. By getting
vaccinated, you not only
protect yourself but also those
around you. That is why your
decision to get vaccinated
matters. The coronavirus
epidemic will not be over until
the majority of the population
has been vaccinated.
Each resident can choose to
get vaccinated when it is their
turn. The vaccination is free of
charge.
Further information about whose
turn it is to get vaccinated, the
progress of vaccinations, age groups
and the vaccines is available at
espoo.fi/coronavaccination.