KEran HAllit
Makes space for living
THE OLD KeRa
Keran Hallit used to be a logistics center for Inex Partners, and was responsible for handling nearly half of the food products sold in Finland. The halls are quite familiar to people of the area, as during its 53 years of operation the logistics center employed nearly 30,000 people.
In 2019, the logistics center moved into new premises in Bastukärr, Sipoo and at the end of the very same year, the halls were opened for temporary use. At the moment, various actors of Keran Hallit provide an abundance of exciting services and products for people.
In the near future, the halls will be demolished to make space for a new neighborhood and urban center.
THE NEW kEra
During the temporary use, Keran Hallit is capable of hosting a small village of different actors under its roof. In the future, the area will be able to provide accommodation for over 6000 people. When combined with the upcoming residential area on the northern side of Kera railway station, the area in total will be a home for over 15,000 people – roughly as big as the population of a small Finnish city.
The urban center of Kera will form around the railway station, where one will be able to find most of the services. Pedestrian ways and market squares will combine the center with recreational areas. Quality planning and building, both indoors and outdoors, will be the focal point of the whole process.
The new Kera district’s progression will start around Keran Hallit, on the southern side of the Kera railway station, followed by transforming the old industrial site on the northern side of the tracks. In the near future, Kutojantie area on the southern side of Keran Hallit, will also be transformed.
Residential buildings and commercial spaces will be built alongside the boulevard of Kutoja. The main objective is to combine old and new structures: at the moment, Kutoja region has an abundance of unused commercial spaces waiting to be renovated for new purposes, such as housing, workshops, ateliers, or cultural centers.
Kutoja holds the potential to be turned into a diverse and sustainable center of crafts and experimental art that supports circular economy and modern urban production solutions.