Helsinki, Finland

Tapiola Harmony

Introduction

Stop with further devastation of Mother Earth.

Stop with uncreative town planning regulations.

We should cease to continuously produce the same buildings and objects on the models established by our ancestors. They worked well in their time but do not correspond anymore to the current and future needs.

Let us create the new concepts for the present and future generations. How to find a correct answer to the problem of mobility in a town represented by a generation of automobiles? Is this question correct? Maybe we should look for a new model of town where this question will become obsolete.

Many false problems that wreck the brains of town authorities and politicians are easily solved by surprising and creative solutions of some genius thinkers. Let them do their work.

For example, at the end of XIX century in Poland, the authorities of Warsaw were looking for a solution to the growing problem of the lack of space for horse stables for the local tramway company. However, with the invention of electrical power this problem has been solved.

We should train and educate the politicians and administrative authorities for the present and future tasks in order to make them more capable for assuming their responsibilities and proceeding together with the visionary designers. We should abandon the old bad habits and elevate a new model of politicians capable of an intelligent and clever management of the Earth Globe and Earth Society. Our Mother Earth needs them. The continuation of the initiated action in Kyoto in 1995 brought the necessary impulse to the saving of the Earth and Humanity and should subsequently be supported by intensive scientific research and design.

How to do it? We propose to abandon the old concept of box-like construction.

It has been long enough since the ancient times, where the wooden constructions in the Vikings era and, later on, until the era of Le Corbusier Chart of Athens, where the use of primitive box-like architectures was justified. But now we should do more and do better.

From our recent experience in some European cities in the Grand Ensembles created after the 2nd World War where recently the revolted young population was burning cars, we have seen that this kind of concept was an evident town planning error. Where the existing lack of neighbourhood relations web and anonymity of inhabitants, has created the feeling of insecurity and generated a still growing criminality leading to the exclusion of their populations from the whole community

How to solve this crucial problem and how to avoid this mistakes? Come back to the middle age model of town with streets and blocks and whole stuff of traditional items?

Project

With respect for their glorious past, we propose to conserve only the valuable remnants of the existing construction stock and create the new sustainable model for the current and future generations.

The new structures will integrate the existing ones in the newly created clusters.

1- Architecture:

To brake out with the existing fashionable architectures and current modern trends, based on the show of wealth of their promoters and pseudo aesthetic devastating Mother Nature, we propose the new superstructures which will reflect the connection between the Earth and Cosmos. The newly created crust will substitute the existing untouched earth surface but will still enable the transport of energy and transparency.

In our model, we offer a naturally formed morphology created by the new structural web containing the programmed functions of dwellings and their infrastructures.

The creation of soft-lined forms and volumes harmonizing the existing natural fixtures with the existing building stock will better correspond to the needs of the Helsinki area natural landscape.

§ Light superstructures composed of a number of levels, supported by a regular grid of supporting modules, which contain the vertical circulation devices that connect them to the totally free ground floor level left in its natural and original form.

§ The application of principles of sustainable building design based on reduced CO² emission technologies, creation of bio-filters, use of the natural non-fossil resources for energy production, grey water recycling, rain waters management, and the application of solar passive principle, will all participate in the synergy of the new created ensembles.

In the proposed new structures, we have obtained a higher density coefficient than in the existing traditional ones without negative environmental impact.

The principle of open plan enables further changes of family structure, grouping and division of created volumes and will ensure the sustainability of created clusters.

2- The mobility & Transport

1- GH Motorway and Railway Ring

2- Local penetration motorways

3- Subway

4- Canal waterways

5- Bike-car passage web. The bike-cars and other vehicles based on non-polluting energies will not require a heavy structure road system. The wooden paths and other natural light materials will ensure the supporting web of roads for this type of communication.

In the created ensembles, the local mobility will be ensured by the vertical circulation based on the regular grid of the supporting structure and system of ramps enabling an easy access to all facilities for everyone.

3- Safety and Fire protection

The newly created structures detached from its natural base will completely free the ground floor and enable easy access to the fire escapes to every part of the created facilities through a system of open atriums.

4- Environmentally Synergetic Housing Principles

The destroyed natural landscape by traditional modes of construction should be restored and built up with architecture based on the interaction between the surrounding natural fittings and the newly created volumes.

The soft and natural created tectonic lines will remind us that we are part of Nature: important, clever, responsible; yearning for peace and harmony.

We propose to realize an urban organism based on optimal parameters indispensable for sustainable development through:

A The realization of a high population density without turning to the typical box-like sky scrapers of the last XX century, through the application of a superstructure of terraced suspended gardens. This superstructure will soften the damage done to Nature during the years of extensive exploitation and partially restore the original natural morphology of the site.

B The creation of an environment without traffic noise and air pollution.

C – The autonomy of the proposed ensemble based on solar, wind, and combustion of trash energy with recuperation of rain water and the re-usage of grey waters for energy and consumption needs.

D Enhanced mobility based on non-polluting means of collective and personal transport devices

6 Urban Environment

A – Greening of the city and its effect on environmental control:

Environmental control effects of rooftop greening

I Indoor environment: thermal insulation, sound insulation, reduced impact of solar radiation.

II Outdoor environment: sound absorption: reduced reflection of solar heat, amenities enhancement.

III Urban environment: reduction of heat island, mitigation of urban flooding, reduction of desiccation, absorption of CO², improvement of the urban landscape.

B – Creation of environmentally friendly and comfortable urban spaces:

A truly comfortable indoor environment can only be created in relation to a good outdoor environment with a careful balance between: The Earth – The City Constructed surroundings Indoor space.

A building creates a new microclimate around it. In urban areas packed with buildings, the space is much more enclosed. A specific microclimate is created in a buildings surroundings, depending on its special form and building materials. So we can say that the microclimates of building surroundings are the key to creating a comfortable and environmentally friendly living space in cities.

C – The importance of essential functions in created clusters:

1- Playgrounds have a prime priority for the development of human beings. Playgrounds have a priority to work places because they induce the capacity of creation, imagination, and adaptation to the constantly-changing life condition which are acquired during the playing process of the childhood period.

2- Educational facilities follow closely in importance to the playgrounds and precede the work places.

3- Work places will vary in proportion with the modification of working methods in the era of the constant development of computer sciences and communication techniques.

4- Services as basic equipment for living facilities.

5- Living facilities which will constantly move and change its models and composition.

D – Proposal for a climate vision for the great Helsinki Area:

1- Reduced CO² emissions:

-Through improved energy efficiency & economical use of natural resources

2- Traffic:

-Preference is given to public transportation and reduced individual transport use through correct distribution of various urban facilities (health, services, commerce, work places and other).

-Use of none polluting transport means such us bike, car-bike, cars based on eco-fuel, water ways and extensive pedestrian paths web.

3- Land use:

-Well integrated and harmonized with natural landscape volumes, breaking with the concept of ancient box-like structures.

-Correct distribution of various urban functions, supported by rail links and other sustainable links like new created water canal ways.

-Good orientation for solar passive efficiency (light and energy).

4- Building:

-Research for a new concept of a sustainable building with reduced harmful emissions

5- Energy production and distribution by local integrated generators:

-Wind turbines

-Solar energy collectors

-Waste combustion

-Gray waters energy recuperation.

E- Greater Helsinki Additional Dwellings & Population:

L-total = Total Number of Dwellings = 55 clusters of 4.224 units = 232.320

A-total = Total Dwellings Gross Floor Area = 232.320 units of 162m² () = 37.635.840 m²

H-total =Total Number of Habitants = 55 clusters of 12.672 habitants = 696.960

() Average values. See detailed calculations in item 5.

Europaconcorsi Beta

Tapiola Harmony