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Esplanade Street Experiment - Vitality for Helsinki's City Centre

WSP delivered the planning, the street design, furnishing and landscaping for the Esplanade project in Helsinki, Finland.

Location

  • Helsinki, Finland

Client

  • The City of Helsinki

Project Status

  • Completed in 2023

 

Located in the heart of Helsinki, Esplanade  is an iconic park and street area lined with numerous restaurants and shops. Every year, millions of tourists visit the area, and for residents it's a popular passageway and leisure spot.

In the summer of 2023, significant renovations were carried out to the street space, creating more room for leisure and experiences. The goal of the two-year-long experiment is to create a lively and comfortable city centre with flourishing brick-and-mortar shops, pleasant sitting and meeting places, and a coherent network of pedestrian areas. Through this experiment, the city of Helsinki is now gathering data to support the development of the car-free, low carbon and attractive city centre.

WSP's experts were responsible for the main planning of the project, as well as the design of streets, furnishing and landscaping. The team included experts from our units specializing in street and traffic planning, urban design, landscape architecture and structural engineering.


Collaborative planning

The streets of the Esplanade are among the most renowned in Helsinki, and a central transportation route, making the area one of the most challenging to change. To meet the needs of this project, the planning process had to be both exceptional collaborative.

In traditional urban planning, plans are created and are publicly available for a limited time. In collaborative planning, all stakeholders are involved throughout the entire process. This approach speeds up the process and reduces errors, as stakeholders and authorities can provide feedback on drafts. Moreover, it reduces costs.

Collaborative planning was utilized from the very beginning of the project. Regular workshops were held with residents, stakeholders, and authorities, and feedback on proposed design solutions was actively collected. As a result, what is often a year-long planning process was completed in just three months.


Historically-inspired design and unique solutions

The renovations turned the Esplanade streets into one-lane roadways. The most significant change occurred in Pohjoisesplanadi, where the existing sidewalk expanded by approximately 1000 m2. The aim was to design an area that fits within the heritage context and offers pleasant sitting and meeting places.

Street space was expanded with both granite pavements and terraces with wooden decks. The pavement was expanded using the same granite that was already in use on the sidewalks. Wooden terraces have been adorned with dark steel ornaments, the design of which draws inspiration from the decorative elements of the surrounding buildings.

Street furnishings and plantings adhere to the guidelines outlined in the historical study. The furniture choices and plant design have drawn inspiration from the architecture of the area and historical manor gardens. The residents and entrepreneurs of the area also wanted playful and distinctive furnishings.

The plant selection was inspired by the early 20th century in terms of variety and style. In addition to traditional plant species, rarer, newer varieties can also be found. The selection is a refreshing blend of old and new, with the plant palette being harmonized with the colors of the building facades lining the streets.

There are numerous lounge areas on the street that can be used freely. The living areas are demarcated from the car lane with the help of potted plants.

The expansion areas of Pohjoisesplanadi were made with natural stone and wood coatings. The stone surface extensions were made of the same domestic granite as the current sidewalks. Raised wooden terraces were built in places where rainwater should flow freely under the structure. Throughout the entire planning process of the area, there was close cooperation with café and restaurant operators, who were allowed to decide on the furniture for their terraces and their placement.

Warm tones and decorative details overlap with the raised terrace sections of the street. The eco-friendly and sustainably harvested Kebony wood surface of the terrace, designed specifically for the Esplanade, is decorated with a parquet-like pattern. The dark steel design of the corners was inspired by the details of the surrounding buildings. After street testing, the elements can be used as a parklet solution.

In the design workshops, residents, operators and designers from the area all fell in love with the benches found in the lounge areas. The furniture chosen has curved shapes and decorative details suitable for the historical style, and their warm colour tones harmonize with the surrounding buildings.

The S-shaped bench was historically used for conversations and whispering secrets. Today it can also be used to greet while on a date.

The mirror balls of the Esplanade's flower plantings also have their own interesting history. They were originally used in royal gardens as a handy tool. By glancing at the mirror balls, a butler could discreetly observe the surroundings and note the activities of the guests. In Finland, mirror balls can still be seen in the gardens of manors and vicarages. Additionally, they can aid in achieving a great mirror selfie! 

Another unique installation on the Esplanade is the plastic dog, which children and adults, alike, can sit on. The captivating design bench made of recycled plastic represents today's urban design, both in its look as a balloon animal, and its functionality as a bench.

In 1851, the first international exhibition, known as the Great Exhibition, was organized in London, England. There, a fern-patterned bench was presented to the public. It quickly gained great popularity and became a common sight in English parks and gardens. The bench model also spread to other countries, and was soon manufactured by several Swedish foundries.

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