Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2018 | Page 43

Hospital of the Future 2030 Programme
Director Kari-Pekka Tampio says that both
new operative models and modern hospital
technology require new premises. This
first phase of the programme encompasses
46,000 square metres and comes with a price
tag of EUR 164 million.
“Finally, we can go ahead with the
construction effort,” Tampio comments the
project. Demolishing is already underway
and actual construction should start by
autumn 2018, at the latest. The hospital
should be up and ready to go by the end of
2021, giving a great start to the Hospital of
the Future 2030 programme.
Education Edge
Another “super project” in the works is the
joint campus for the two local academic
powerhouses, University of Oulu and Oulu
University of Applied Sciences. According
to the plans, the Linnanmaa Campus – home
of the University of Oulu – will feature both
universities in 2020, meaning about 20,000
students.
Oulu Mayor Päivi Laajala says that the
creation of one of Europe’s biggest indoor
campuses will require the City to consider
issues such as land use, zoning and traffic
arrangements to make sure that the new
education formula works.
“We also want to make sure that the
city centre and the campus fully interact and
support each other. Furthermore, we expect
this move will add to the appeal of the local
education cluster and will enhance also the
links to business,” Laajala says, adding
that the campus project is very much about
“creating an ecosystem” where higher learn-
ing, research and companies work in unison.
Jouni Niinimäki, Rector of University
of Oulu, and Jouko Paaso, Rector of Oulu
University of Applied Sciences, state that the
idea is to start something special – unique,
even – at Linnanmaa.
“Using the same premises, we can
1st
in ICT R&D investments in Finland
250,000 people live in Oulu metropolitan region
1/3
with university degree
38
years is the average age
120
different nationalities
2nd
busiest in airport in Finland
300–400 million EUR to be spent on city center development projects
710
million EUR to be invested in infrastructure development by the City
focus on adding new services on campus
and advance also, for instance, the mobility
for students and teachers,” says Niinimäki,
pointing out that the Linnanmaa Campus will
also be a digital campus, or even a virtual one.
“In a sense, we are creating a genuine
‘education city’ that has a very strong focus
on the future. The possibilities really are
quite endless,” adds Paaso.
Northern Lights
Oulu is also a tremendous city from the
perspective of travel & tourism. Jyrki
Kemppainen from BusinessOulu says that
the region offers a great mix of nature,
safety and urban comforts – and people are
catching on to this.
“The local hotel occupation rate for
2017 is over 65% and new capacity is
required to fulfil the growing needs of the
visitors,” Kemppainen says.
Among the new projects, there is, for
instance, Nallikari travel centre. Located
four kilometres from downtown, Nallikari
has EUR 100 million investments being
planned for the area. Already, there is the
Nallikari Holiday Village, a year-round
holiday resort that has made a name for itself
as the “Riviera of the North”.
“Nallikari offers beautiful seaside
nature and could really be something
spectacular in the coming years,”
Kemppainen believes. “According to the
plans, the internationally attractive area
could accommodate an amusement park,
an activity arena and hotels.”
Port Upgrade    
As it is located upon the Baltic Sea, Oulu has
long relied on its capable port operations.
The port of Oulu is the largest general port in
the Bothnian Bay; Port of Oulu and Oritkari
logistics area provide a gateway to the
northern areas of Finland, Sweden, Norway,
and Northwestern Russia. Furthermore, Port
of Oulu has shown a very positive trend
recently with the total cargo volume of the
port increasing for three straight years.
Marko Mykkänen, Managing Director
of Port of Oulu Ltd, says that there’s even
more good news: the State has promised to
build a deeper, 12.5 metre channel for the
port.
“The deep channel project will ensure
a cost-effective transportation route for
northern industry to the global market via
Europe,” says Mykkänen. With dredging
expected to commence in 2018, the total
cost of the project, EUR 30 million, is to be
paid by State, City and Port.
The Port of Oulu will also expand its
land area by 100 hectares and an entirely
new access road to the Port is under
construction. In addition to the Port’s own
investments, over EUR 50 million will be
invested in the logistics properties along the
access road. l
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