Re-claim Re-form

The challenge that the site of the former Wärtsilä production center posed was to reintegrate an area of exceptional size within the urban fabric of Vaasa and the daily life of its inhabitants, thus marking a new chapter after a long phase as a gated complex. Therefore, besides the work of adaptive reuse of the warehouses at the core of the plot, the in-between spaces and the vast surround­ings needed multiple layers of public services to revitalize the place. The main move in this sense has been to set a hot springs complex, with several outdoor and indoor pools that intertwine with the landscape. The debris of the demolished buildings on the northern end of the site was used as landfill to cre­ate an undulating landscape, within which the ambience of a Nordic forest was created, lined with pathways organising the movement through the site. The forest extends and wraps around the Metviken lake, creating a natural link between North and South. Dotted throughout the forest are small, independent sauna modules that are a modern speculation on the traditional Finnish milieu of lakeside sceneries. On the Southern end of the forest, one experiences an additional layer; commercial insertions merge the lei­sure and industrial quarters with a number of shops lined along the central promenade stemming from the central city square all through to the North. Together with the new additions, some of the existing buildings were re-purposed and integrated into the masterplan, offering a wide range of services, such as pool facilities, gym, spa centre, tempo­rary residences, and restaurants.
An urban alteration of this scale will no doubt change public perceptions of a previously peripheral site within the city. The recreational facilities introduce a range new activities, both active and sedentary, and will encourage the citizens of Vaasa to interact with the site in ways not a single resident could have previously imagined.