The Mayor is making Helsinki a city of cosy neighbourhoods. The direction is clear: good basic services and more vitality.
As a primary school student, Mayor Daniel Sazonov would often sneak into the Malminkartano or “Maltsu” library after school.
“When I was a kid I used to look for the Junior Woodchuck's Guidebooks, and when I was a bit older I used to go and play Habbo Hotel in that computer room. My Avatar was called Racsi,” Sazonov says while standing in the middle of the library.
It is his favourite place in the Malminkartano of his childhood, never failing to evoke a “warm, fuzzy feeling”.
There is also another reason why Sazonov brought me and the photographer to Malminkartano. The area is a suburban regeneration area, which is being developed further by constructing new buildings, adding and reforming services and making parks and squares more inviting.
“Malminkartano is an example of how much we, as a city, invest in renovating and rebuilding schools and daycare centres.”
He asks the librarians if the matter with temporary facilities has been resolved yet. Within five years, the library will move to new premises twice the size of the current ones. The library's current building will be expanded and house a pre-primary school, Malminkartano Primary School and Apollo Lower Secondary School and Upper Secondary School.
Construction in Helsinki and the development of public transport aim to create a “cycle of positivity”.Ultimately, this all comes down to people enjoying their neighbourhoods and feeling proud of their home city. This is one of the key objectives of the City Strategy for Sazonov.
The previous City Strategy talked about the “comfort of city districts”, but now it aims to leave such stiff official language behind.
“Our life is in the neighbourhood that we become attached to. Our home, our children’s daycare centres and schools, shops, sports clubs and other activities, public transport services and so on are all there. I hope for neighbourhoods to build a strong sense of community and wellbeing, fostering a sense of safety,” Sazonov says.
Even rapid action has been needed to secure this. Sazonov says that the City has addressed the security challenge posed by α-PVP – the designer drug also known as flakka – in different parts of the city. The City has worked more closely with the police and has invested in treatment referrals and outreach services. Camera surveillance will also be increased.
We must ensure a day-to-day life where all children learn to read and count.
Another important objective for the Mayor is to strengthen basic public services, in particular basic education. The number of Finnish or Swedish lessons, the teaching language of comprehensive school, will be increased and support for learning will be enhanced.
“We must ensure a day-to-day life where all children learn to read and count,” says Sazonov.
This is based on the idea that all children, regardless of their mother tongue, should get a good start for their school path and being part of society. That is why Helsinki, together with other major cities, is pushing for a legislative change that would make early childhood education compulsory one year earlier than now and would extend the duration of pre-primary education to two years.
When Sazonov speaks about the development of services, he stresses that the City also wants to provide quicker access to non-urgent care for residents and plans to introduce a primary care physician model.
But things usually come in threes: Sazonov points out that vitality is the critical lever that makes plans a reality. That's why the City plans to attract even more new talent, companies, investors, tourists and events to Helsinki. He mentions that the number of overnight stays by domestic and foreign tourists increased significantly compared to the previous summer.
“There are also other positive signs in the air, such as Supercell's plan for its new headquarters and the new icebreaker orders from Helsinki Shipyard. On the other hand, unemployment in Helsinki is higher than in the rest of the country,” says Sazonov.
He adds that Helsinki Employment Services have entered into a partnership with Helsinki Shipyard to train skilled labour for the shipyard's needs.
Sazonov is proud not only of the City Strategy in general, but also of the way it was compiled.
“I’m proud that we have been able to build a shared vision that is based on extensive cooperation. It provides a good basis for the development of Helsinki.”
Sazonov, who takes his job very seriously, says that as mayor he works hard every day for Helsinki and the people of Helsinki. He doesn't mind mixing work and leisure time.
“It is important for me to be present in the everyday lives of Helsinki residents and to visit places such as different neighbourhood events, sports games or the Helsinki Baltic Herring Market,” he says.
Sazonov also organises and hosts dinner parties with his wife Anita and reads and exercises.
In Malminkartano Library, he browsed a book he had read recently, “Blanka, Itämeren tytär” by Ulla Rask. He found this historical adventure novel a suitably deep read. He goes to the gym once a week and jogs twice a week. While running along the coastline in Töölö, nothing lingers on his mind but the landscape itself.
“Sometimes jogging is on pause, but I always start again.”
Text: Katja Alaja
Photos: Cata Portin
This story was published in Helsinki-lehti magazine, issue 2/2025.
