Wooden houses in Hipposkylä

A new urban plan of Hipposkylä area in Kissanmaa took place on 5 October 2020. The urban plan requires the protection and renovation of old wooden buildings located in Hippoksenkatu. POAS is involved in the Hipposkylä project in cooperation with TVA (Tampereen Vuokra-asunnot), which owns the majority of the old wooden buildings in the area. POAS also owns four of the old buildings.

The wooden buildings were built in the 40s. In the construction, they have used organic building materials which were typical construction materials in those days. When we conducted condition inspections, harmful substances, such as asbestos and fungal growth, were found in the structures of the wooden buildings. Renovating these buildings to be sufficient for healthy and safe living is very challenging even if the houses were completely renovated, since the PAH compounds (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) found in the foundations and protected parts of the buildings are harmful to humans. Condition surveys show that living safety cannot be guaranteed even with thorough renovations, so in this case renovating the existing buildings is not sensible in any way. It is our top priority to guarantee the health and safety of our apartments we provide to our tenants.

The buildings are currently empty. Unfortunately they have been exposed to vandalism, even though trespassing in the area has been restricted and surveillance was increased. There have been several fires in the area, which are currently under police investigation. In November 2022, one of our buildings burned down. We applied for a permit to demolish the burned building, and our application was approved in May 2023. Our aim is to build an entirely new building, which looks similar to the old ones and respects the original protection plan. The new building is going to have 12-14 apartments.

We aim that the protection plan of the Hipposkylä area could be changed so that the old wooden buildings could be replaced with new ones while respecting the traditional look. Providing an entirely new housing is the only way we can keep the area inhabited and guarantee the residents’ living safety and comfort. We hope to bring the traditional area of ​​Hipposkylä back to life!