Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2018 | Page 33

The game plan for the metro line has
been – all along – to view the project as
“the great enabler”. As the plans for the
new stations were drawn up, the surround-
ing communities received a boost as well.
For instance, the venerable Tapiola C
­ entre
is getting a total makeover and added a new
shopping centre; shopping centre Iso Omena
received a big expansion in Matin­kylä. New
services and apartments have been built
along the tracks.
Green Rails
Launching of the metro also shows that
Espoo is serious in pursuing a more compact
urban structure that is based on rails. The
City expects that development and redevel-
opment efforts near the metro stations will
continue to be very active for years to come,
providing real estate investors and develop-
ers many possibilities to participate.
The metro extension is a good fit for
state’s Climate Change agenda, too. Finland
is committed to bringing down the volume
of CO 2 emissions and two big culprits in
this arena are traffic and living. By build-
ing a “green to the core” mass transportation
system and launching smart, sustainably-ori-
ented communities around the metro stations
is an environmental move, as well. As a city,
Espoo fits the green bill well, being the first
city in Finland to join the Society’s Commit-
ment to Sustainable Development in 2015.
Niittykumpu
Phase II Making Progress
Matinkylä
Matinkylä
But with all the hoopla surrounding the
Grand Opening, one may forget that the job
is not done yet. The construction crews have
long ago pushed past Matinkylä – the cur-
rent end-of-the-line – and are looking to add
seven kilometres to the metro line. Reach-
ing all the way to the municipal border, the
Matin­kylä–Kivenlahti stretch of the west
metro will introduce five new stations to
the metro system: Finnoo, Kaitaa, Soukka,
Espoonlahti, and Kivenlahti.
The Matinkylä–Kivenlahti section is
currently being excavated; in fact, the exca-
vation work began already in 2014. More
than 90 per cent of the tunnels have been
excavated so far.
According to plans, the entire line from
Matinkylä to Kivenlahti will be completed
in 2020 – at the earliest. However, not many
Finns are holding their breath with regards
to that timetable. Still, during the next dec-
ade metro will re-energise five new neigh-
bourhoods in Espoo. For example, Espoon-
lahti – a key station along the extension line
– is already a city centre of 55,000 residents
and expected to benefit tremendously from
better connectivity. l
Sami J. Anteroinen
Nordicum 33