City centre project
The centre of Kerava is the heart of the city and should ideally be a living room for residents and one of the most important pull factors for the entire city. With the help of the Keskustaprojekti initiative, the city envisions and steers the construction and development of the city centre.
The aim is to densify the urban structure of the city centre by building new apartments and commercial premises. However, the aim is to maintain the focus of commercial activities in the pedestrian centre along Kauppakaari. Another goal is to build a desirable, attractive and comfortable living environment in the city centre, where services are close to residents.
The aim is also to increase the attractiveness of the city as a vibrant and diverse regional centre and hub of commuter traffic. The aim is to design a vibrant transport hub around the railway station, with modern bicycle parking and park-and-ride facilities to improve public transport within Kerava and around in the Helsinki metropolitan region.
The new centre of Kerava is being planned
An area development plan has been completed for the city centre of Kerava, which comprehensively guides the city centre’s zoning projects, street and park plans and other functional development. The Kerava City Board approved the plan on 24 October 2022.
Progress has been made on several town plans for the city centre and once the plans are completed, the urban environment in the centre of Kerava will be safer and more comfortable with new housing and green spaces and high-quality architecture.
Several areas are currently being zoned, including the railway station area, Kauppakaari 1 and Länsi-Kauppakaari. The aim of the development of the railway station area is to build new residential and commercial space in a location with excellent transport connections. The addition of 450 parking spaces and 1,000 bicycle spaces for park-and-ride commuters promotes sustainable mobility. The rezoning of Kauppakaari 1 on the site of the old Anttila department store will increase the amount of housing in Kerava city centre. Increasing housing in the city centre will support the profitability and diversity of local services. The site of the former S-market at the northern end of the pedestrian street is also being developed in the Länsi-Kauppakaari project. The aim is to increase the supply of high-quality housing in the city centre.
Kerava’s renewing station area – International Architectural Competition
The architectural competition for the Kerava station area was decided in summer 2022, and the winners were announced at the award ceremony on 20 June 2022. An international ideas competition was organised on the renewal of the Kerava railway station area from 15 November 2021 to 15 February 2022. A total of 46 approved concepts were submitted. The results of the architectural competition have been used both in the city centre’s area development plan and in zoning around the railway station area.