Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2012 | Page 17

World Design Capital 2012 is finally
here. Celebrating design in its myriad
forms is the theme for the year, but
the design-orientation will not stop
there. Case in point: cutting-edge
real estate projects – with their bold
architecture – will remain with us for
decades to come.

F

or Helsinki, the World Design Capital
year coincides with the launch of major urban development projects. Currently, the urban structure of Helsinki is already changing more rapidly than at anytime during the past 100 years. In order to
make sure that the transition is a successful
one, sustainable urban planning and worldclass architectural design have equally important roles to play.
The development of shore, port and
railway yard areas will radically alter the
city during the coming decades. The transformation is expected to create 4.5 million
square metres of new residential floor area and almost 2.5 million m² of business
premises, providing new homes for more
than 100,000 people as well as jobs for tens
of thousands.

Kalasatama Gets Competitive
One of the new seaside neighbourhoods to
be built is Kalasatama, which is taking over
a vacant harbour area. In 2011, the City of
Helsinki Real Estate Committee organised a
plot assignment competition concerning the
seaside block in Sörnäistenniemi, which is
the first residential area to be built in Kalasatama.
The purpose of the competition was to
find out who would get to realise the blockof-flats plot in the Täkkäri block. The goal
was to produce a plan which is architecturally sound, unique in the urban landscape and
feasible with top-class functionality.
In addition, the competition aimed at
finding novel solutions for urban living in
blocks of flats that would better meet the requirements of diversity and adaptability it
faces today. In addition, the ideals regarding housing in an urban structure are evolving and the new house should reflect this.

Perfect Balance
Out of the six proposals, the jury of the competition picked Poiju (Buoy) as the winner.
The construction company Lujatalo will realise the project which features a full-blooded design house. The jury commented that
the strong and versatile use of different materials and the balance therein was one of
the factors that delivered the victory for Lujatalo. Also the “spirit of Kalasatama” was
viewed to be well represented in the work.
Architects Ulla Saarinen and Jukka
Turtiainen were in charge of the winning

Enter: Strategic Design

F

inland is one of the forerunners of strategic design which is taking the entire
concept of design a couple of levels higher – quite possibly all the way to the
corner office or the board room. A reporter from The Guardian ran into this
phenomenon as he familiarised himself with the activities of the Strategic Design
Unit (SDU) of Sitra, a Finnish think-tank.
In essence, the Sitra SDU is made up of an international team of experts with
backgrounds in architecture and urban planning, web and interactive design. These
crack troops of strategic design have a knack for thinking at varying scales – from
polishing pixels to raising communities in 10 seconds.
What makes strategic design tick, then? Well, basically the concept is all about
applying a design method to a system, rather than an object, as conventional wisdom would have it. The Guardian points out that the interesting thing about the Sitra
SDU is that it takes design approach to matters of public policy. Thinking on the
macro scale, the unit is, quite possibly, on its way to reinventing the social contract.
While strategic design can’t necessarily find the perfect answer, it at least begins by asking the right questions. As a result, you sometimes have to toss the old
“if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it” adage. The Sitra team is working hard to improve the Finnish education system – despite the fact that it has been declared to
be the best in the world many times over. SDU wants to go the extra mile to perfect the system.
During the London design festival in September