9. Planning a Green City: The Case of Helsinki, 2002–2018

The planning of Helsinki balances between the aims of creating a densely built-up network city and that of preserving green space. While Helsinki ranks among the greenest capital cities in Europe, the city has managed to preserve major green spaces that form its green network so far. The continuous growth of its population, however, complicates the situation given the limited amount of land available for future development. This chapter analyses the problem concerning the role of green space in town planning in Helsinki by analysing how green space has been dealt with in two successive master plans (2002 and 2016) for the city. Unlike many other cities, the city of Helsinki is both the main town planning authority and the principal landowner explaining its controversial approach to its green spaces. In these master plans, the city has allocated some of its green spaces for development in contrast to a global trend. Simultaneously, it has enhanced the roles of green spaces emphasising ecology and sustainability providing meagre information about the development of green space.