Lithuanian-Finnish Team Awarded First Prize in Linnanniemi Idea Competition
The winning proposal of the Linnanniemi idea competition is “Kolme palaa” by Lithuanian-Finnish team After Party. The proposal “H2Å” by Architects Anttila & Rusanen Ltd came second and “Kolme” by Liisa Heinonen and Henri Jessen-Juhler came third. The awarded proposals envisaging a new maritime city district received positive feedback e.g. for honouring the role of Turku Castle and for having successfully balanced the functionalities planned for the area.
An international idea competition for the Linnanniemi area was held in spring 2020 with the objective of finding a comprehensive overall idea and versatile development options for this significant area surrounding Turku Castle.
- In the competition programme, the teams were instructed to honour the valuable area. The proposals achieved this objective well. The best ones accentuate the historical environment beautifully and the maritime location of the area has been taken into consideration while creating new in this city in personal ways, says Mayor of Turku Minna Arve, chair of the jury.
In the winning proposal “Kolme palaa”, the area of Linnanniemi has been divided into three sections, all of which have their specific functional features. The designers have named these areas Uusi Linnanpuisto (New Castle Park), Merikortteli (Maritime Block) and Satamakaupunki (Port Town). The jury considered the special merits of this proposal to be its overall delicate vision and balance. The main idea consisting of three parts respects Turku Castle and creates a wide park area between the Castle and river.
- By reintroducing nature as a backbone to Linnanniemi, the much-needed link between the city and the archipelago can be achieved. The three pieces aim to represent the versatile identity of the city of Turku. While forming different functional areas, the proposal ensures a diverse and balanced whole, including business and accommodation, housing and leisure, culture and recreation, says architect Giedrius Mamavicius from After Party.
The proposal “H2Å”, which came second in the competition, was considered by the jury to have the most original idea. In this proposal, the Linnankatu street axis and the effective design of the complementary construction blocks help create a spatial structure that is very different from the current structure and stands out among the other entries: the Castle is directed at the sea, not the river.
The proposal “Kolme”, which came third in the competition, received positive feedback for a composed and successful whole. Using low-level buildings throughout in the proposal enhances the dominance of the Castle. The proposal contains interesting outdoor spaces and promising sets of spaces. It would undoubtedly form part of a pleasant walking city.
Overall, competition participants had thoroughly engaged with their task.
- The challenging and varied nature of the task undoubtedly contributed to the fact that the competition proposals contain creative ideas for versatile future images that are based on strong analysis, says Director of Urban Planning Timo Hintsanen, vice-chair of the jury.
In addition to the awarded proposals, the City of Turku decided to purchase two more proposals: “The Urban Archipelago” by Danish STED and Atelier Lorentzen Langkilde and “Tides” by Studio A/H.
Moreover, the following entries received honorary mentions:
- Petri Laaksonen: “Visionnaire”
- Andrei Periainen, Juha Riihelä: “Kohtaamisia”
- L Architects Ltd, VSU Oy, Ethica Oy, WSP Oy, Ola Design Oy: “Down by the River”
- Janne Leino ja Edgars Racins: “Soul Mate”
- Niklas Turunen, Tommi Junnola, Eveliina Kunnaton: “Uomat”
- In the next phase, the objective is to examine together with city residents, business representatives and other partners how successful features can be combined in an optimal way to create a functioning, attractive entity. We now have excellent building blocks to turn Linnanniemi into an urban oasis creatively combining history and maritime elements with modern urban culture. This has been our objective in development work. And the setting could not be any more stunning, says Timo Hintsanen.
The international Linnanniemi idea competition was open to all and it was organised between 9 January and 28 May 2020 by the City of Turku in collaboration with the Finnish Association of Architects (SAFA) and the Finnish Association of Landscape Architects (MARK). In total, 127 proposals were submitted for the competition from Finland and abroad.
The 10 successful competition entries and their written evaluations are on display until 15 November in the Linnanniemi pop-up exhibition and on the Voice your opinion website https://kerrokantasi.turku.fi/linnanniemi-menestyneet. Through this service, the proposals can also be commented on.
The assessment minutes in their entirety have been published on the competition site: www.turku.fi/en/linnanniemi
Illustrations of the awarded entries: www.turku.fi/linnanniemi-kuvat
Further information:
Director of Urban Planning Timo Hintsanen, +358 50 558 9264, [email protected]
Competition Secretary Paula Markkula +358 40 539 0625, [email protected]
