Havina

ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITION FOR TURKU CITY GARDENS AREA

The goal of the competition was to transform the Turku city gardens and wasteland into a verdant city district and integrate an existing and protected villa milieu to the new residential area. The task was to utilise the varied trees and natural values in the area and design diversified housing: apartment buildings, small houses and terraced houses. The idea was to create a new and distinctive identity for the area. Due to the character of the competition area, individual trees and tree columns in the city gardens have been preserved and additional tree columns have been planted. The identity of the new residential area is strongly rooted in the historical character of the area and emphasising its features.

The design by UKI Arkkitehdit was commended for preserving the distinctive trees, vegetation and buildings in the area, and for its contemporary overall character combining architectural themes from different periods. The assessment records stated that the area design also mixes high and low construction interestingly, and the material palette is natural.