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Malmi

In the coming years, the area around Malmi Station will become an attractive and pleasant centre for the northeast Helsinki. A total of 25,000 apartments are being built in the Malminkenttä area. You won’t find Malmi anywhere else!  

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Malmi as an area 

Malmi’s numerous bricks-and-mortar shops, small businesses, services and amenities have historically made the area a colourful “city within a city”. Now, the winds of change are blowing, but Malmi will always be Malmi – approachable, rugged, genuine, diverse and tolerant. There, everyone has the freedom to live their own kind of life. Malmi is one of the four suburban renewal areas and the largest of Helsinki’s new housing development areas. 

Malmi is a diverse and vibrant urban centre with good rail connections. Malmi centre has reached a stage in its life cycle where it is time to redevelop the area. Suburban regeneration means the long-term development of Malmi through, for example, infill development and the development of services but also short-term measures to improve the urban environment, for instance, in the station region and other public places.

Infill development has started in Malmi centre with new residential projects along Kirkonkyläntie-Vanha Helsingintie. Housing development of the Pikitehdas blocks will start by the middle of the current decade.

Around 13,500 new apartments are planned for the Malminkenttä area, which would be built at an annual rate of 400–600 apartments. It will take around 25–30 years to build the entire area. There are nearly ten areas to be built, each of which will be designed around its own theme. The current target is that building in the southern parts of the area could start by the mid-2020s. An estimated 2,000 new jobs could be created in the Malminkenttä area in the future, primarily in the service sector. 

The largest green areas in the Malmi area are located around the Fallkulla Manor and in the Longinoja Valley, which also has valuable natural sites. As the population of the area grows, the existing green and recreational areas will need to be made more functional, for example, by ensuring that there are sufficient playgrounds and a functioning route network. The aim is also to improve the connectivity and quality of these habitats through the development of meadow and forest networks. Preserving the stream environment of Longinoja is important, especially in view of future changes in land use, and particular attention will be paid to managing stormwaters throughout the catchment area. 

The planned park network in the Malminkenttä area creates the prerequisites for preserving the many natural values of the area. Plenty of space has been reserved for park areas, and thanks to their network-like structure, they will form ecological connections. The central park area is Lentoasemanpuisto, which covers around 20 hectares and opens out in a wedge shape from the protected airport buildings and connects to the fields and meadows of the Fallkulla estate. Lentoasemanpuisto connects also to the Kivikko outdoor park via a wildlife crossing.  

Lentoasemanpuisto and other parks in the area will replace parts of the open habitats that will be lost to development, while creating new urban nature. For example, the open Lentoasemanpuisto will be largely meadowed.

The construction will alter the site and affect the habitat of the flora and fauna. The design of the residential area aims to take into account the habitat potential of the existing species as much as possible.  

Fallkulla, the southern parts of Longinoja and the forest area east of the airport, with their rich birdlife, will be completely or partially excluded from the construction and will be less affected.  

The overall impact on nature and biodiversity has been assessed during the outline planning phase of the Malmi Airport area in the outline planning report.

Plans

Local detailed plans determine the land use of an area, for example, where apartments, offices, parks, streets and other roads will be built. 

Malmi's plans on a map. - Open larger map(Link leads to external service)
Photo: Lauri Rotko

Construction 

The Malminkenttä area is the most significant new construction area in the general plan. It will be planned for about 25,000 residents, and the area will create the preconditions for about 2,000 jobs. The new residents will eventually be served by two new schools, several day-care centres and a commercial centre with services. 
The old airport buildings in the area, the terminal and the hangar, are protected by the detailed plan and will be renovated. The detailed plan allows the buildings to be used for a variety of purposes. The buildings may house public service facilities, cafeterias, restaurants, meeting rooms, shops, offices as well as teaching, storage and exhibition facilities, and facilities for sports and leisure activities.
The Malminkenttä area will be designed as a diverse, high-quality, sustainable and urban area, with a variety of housing options. The area will rely on good public transport connections, initially bus services.   
The main public transport link will be the Viikki-Malmi light rail (ViiMa), which will run from the city centre via Viikki through Malminkenttä to Malmi centre and on to Malmi Hospital. The ViiMa light rail is currently being planned, and its construction will take place at the turn of the 2020s-2030s. In accordance with the general plan, there are also provisions for a transverse Jokeri Light Rail 2 connection and the extension of the light rail network via Jakomäki to the direction of Vantaa. The passenger car and bus traffic will use the new Ilmasilta (Tattarisilta) junction on Lahdenväylä.  

Pre-construction in the Malminkenttä area started in 2022 with the relocation of the natural gas pipeline in the planning areas of Nallenrinne and Lentoasemankorttelit. The aim is to start the street construction in the area in late 2023.   Housing construction in the Malminkenttä area is expected to start by the mid-2020s.

Malminkenttä was opened for recreational use in February 2022. As construction progresses, Malminkenttä will serve the residents of Helsinki as a versatile event and leisure venue covering tens of hectares.

An outdoor training area has been allocated for the logistics training of the Helsinki Vocational College and Adult Institute as a temporary area for the construction of the Roihupelto campus until 2025. In addition, there will be a temporary snow reception area and storage areas to support construction, among other things. 

The city has drawn up a general plan to guide the temporary use of the area for the next ten years. The general plan outlines the proposed locations for new and existing outdoor trails and areas for various activities, and it will be updated in 2023.

Luistelurata Malminkentän alueella. Photo: Paavo Jantunen
Luistelurata Malminkentän alueella. Photo: Paavo Jantunen
Photo: Voima Graphics Oy

Traffic connections 

Malmi is situated close to good rail connections – from the city centre and Helsinki-Vantaa airport, Malmi can be reached by train in about 15 minutes. There are also plans for Viikki-Malmi light rail (ViiMa), which will run from the city centre via Viikki through Malminkenttä to Malmi centre and on to Malmi Hospital. 

Photo: Lauri Rotko

Services 

There are a large number of bricks- and-mortar shops, small businesses and cultural and sports facilities in Malmi. Over the next ten years, many new public services will also be built in Malmi. 
In addition to housing, schools, day-care centres, streets, parks and a commercial centre with services will be built in Malminkenttä. In the beginning, residents will find their daily services in Malmi centre, which will be redeveloped in phases to coincide with the construction of Malminkenttä.
In Malmi centre, the construction programme includes a new family centre, a health and well-being centre, a new school and day-care centre as well as a major extension to Malmi Hospital. The new Malmi rescue station will be built in Malminkenttä in the early 2030s.

Malmi's services on a map. - Open larger map(Link leads to external service)
Photo: Lauri Rotko

Contact information

Name
Kimmo Kuisma 

Title
Project Director 
Description
Coordination of construction and planning 

Name
Ilkka Korpi

Title
Project Engineer

Name
Kaisa Jama

Title
Team Leader
Description
Detailed planning

Name
Anni Tirri

Title
Team Leader
Description
Katusuunnittelu Street planning

Name
Kari Tenkanen

Title
Traffic Engineer
Description
Traffic planning

Name
Jere Saarikko

Title
Project Director
Description
Park planning