Helsinki-Tallinn Archipelago by Cityleft

. H E L S I N K I - TA L L I N N R E G I O N . tracing networks in an archipelago of islands

A g a t i n o R i z z o - To m a s J o n s s o n - E g z o n B a j r a k t a r i - R i c a r d o S a n t a c r u z - R e i n h a r d M i c h e l l e r - S u k a n y a K r i s n a m u r t h y cover.indd 1

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. H E L S I N K I - TA L L I N N R E G I O N . an archipelago of islands

_HTR RESEARCH enter Addressing HTR .introduction .making of the region .dissolving borders networks Uncertain geometries in HTR .networks .politics .business .tourism .education .art / urban culture branding & identity Policy makers Vs. local definition .Baltic Sea Identity .Tallsinki Identity manifestations What is the urban structure of the HTR .main features in the HTR .networks manifestations .the archipelago of HTR .the archipelago and its inhabitants: Estonian, Russian and Russian-Estonian .the emerging of a new territory: the inverse space in the HTR archipelago .the islands: the ferry .the islands: the harbour .the islands: old town .the islands: new town .case of study: the harbour Agatino Rizzo Tomas Jonsson Egzon Bajraktari Ricardo Santacruz Reinhard Micheller Sukanya Krisnamurthy

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kolleg9 eu urbanism ii

exit Conclusion Scenarios _X-TRAS appendix Articles

border cities

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ent er a d d r essi n g h t r

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ENTER / Addressing HTR

//////////////////////////////// INTRODUCTION The idea of Helsinki-Tallinn Region (HTR) as a commonly branded region is in one sense an obvious and natural extension of the close relationship between Tallinn an Helsinki.

Since Estoniaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s independence, this connection has expanded rapidly. Travel between these two centres accounts for the most international traffic. Region makers such as Euregio and Finpro have explored a number of projects to expand this relationship in order to establish a more systematic and integrated connection. The current connection through ferries does not adequately suit the desired speed and volume of traffic in goods and people desired. Therefore, the idea of a bridge -or more realistically a tunnel- has been put forward on several occasions. The idea of a tunnel is clearly influenced by the success of the Oresund Region, and with pressure / encouragement from larger regional organizations such as the European Union. Several logistical obstacles have so far prevented this vision from becoming a reality such as

geography, political will, discrepencies, and local resistance / transcendence.

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ENTER / Addressing HTR

_INTRODUCTION

How to introduce the region? Between Tallinn and Helsinki, a number of bonds are being formed, or enhanced, with the desire to establish and integrated region. Region makers such as EUREGIO view this emerging Tallinn-Helsinki Region as an opportunity to enhance the economic and administrative capacities, as well as to expand transportation and distribution networks. Through our research, we sought to test this notion of regional identity formation, and to determine whether this model, or alternate emergent forms better describe the situation of TallinnHelsinki.

-is there a physical space in which these networks are operating? -what routes, flows can be detected? -which identities / brandings exist? Tools: Interviews, photo documentation, mapping, inventory, general observations

Method of research / hypothesis / indicators Research Thesis:

On Site:

How far is the idea of Talsinki as a cooperating region developed? -investigation of the connections between Tallinn and Helsinki in different sectors and different social levels.

-Investigation of spatial structure of Tallinn and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s development -Observation of city districts -Sites: Tallinn: Old Town, New Town, Harbour, Lasnamae, Pirita, Kristiina, Mustamae, Kopli, Paljassaare,Vaike Olmae,Kalamaja Helsinki: Harbour area, Arabia, Kulosari, Itakeskus Ferry

Guiding questions: -which kinds of collaboration exists? -what constitutes the collaboration? -structure of specific network, integration of other cities

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2 city tours 18 appointments 51 interviews

Research focus: -common people -politics -urban form and development -business -tourism -education -art / urban culture -region makers

Our Methodology:

Research results:

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ENTER / Addressing HTR

fre ed om to .. th nd e e ...... a we st a nd st. es wes ... f t... t.... r e e do . fr ee m fr do om t m he soviets fro mt he s oviets. .. connections

/////////////////// MAKING OF THE REGION During the Soviet Era, Helsinki was the sole connection to the West for the Tallinner’s. For visitors from Finland looking for the exotic East..... Tallinn was the destination. This redefined an old relationship, reinforced by the phrase..... ‘Big brother, Small brother’

Helsinki

n wi

ta as e e w th nd to a w do ast win ee h t to ow wind

borders and connections in the soviet era:. Tallinn

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windows to the east and west

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ENTER / Addressing HTR

////////////////////// DISSOLVING BORDERS

expanding fields post soviet era.. estonia and the world!! Finland 7

Norway United Kingdom

TA L L I N N Germany

Romania

United States

China

Singapore

India Dubai

Mexico Africa Brasil

Australia Argentina

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-/n et wo r ks//_ un c erta i n g eo m et r i es in htr

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

/////////////////////////////////////// NETWORKS Since cooperation between Helsinki and Tallinn has been possible for only 15 years. Region-

making is in the state of beginning.

Nevertheless many networks on several levels exist. These existing networks are less top down governed than expected. In the Helsinki-Tallinn case most networks are formed from bottom up, started by relations between people.

The strongest connections between Helsinki and Tallinn exist in business and tourism. Political and cultural co-operations and networks do exist but are not bordered exclusively between the two cities. In the case of further urban development there is no cooperation at all. Due to this situation of multilayered networks of different shape and interest, a clear boundary of Helsinki-Tallinn-Region cannot be drawn. It is more the case that different networks overlap

with a density between Helsinki and Tallinn.

The achievements to form a defined HTR so far seem quite few. There have been a number of obstacles, even when specific relations work quite well. In the following several actors and networks that are forming an emerging HTR will be introduced.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

/////////////////////////////////////////// POLITICS Political relationships and the networks within the political domain between Helsinki and Tallinn can be divided into two groups. While at the state level there is a strong relationship and long history of connections between political representatives, in the municipal level it is not the same case. 12

Co-operation between two nations in state matters is bounded by direct connections, high number of state visits, very operative organisms such as “Wise Men’s Assembly”, and concrete agreements. One of the goals of Finnish policy in the last decade has been to support Estonia’s internal development and stabilisation of the country’s position internationally.

In municipal level, Helsinki and Tallinn cooperation is still not well developed. However Euregio as a political forum between the two cities and counties is working to make the connection stronger. This relationship implemented through Euregio still is weak. The differences between the cities on social and cultural level might have been bigger than originally thought. The difference of sizes has also had an impact in the process.

The major impression so far is that the achievements of region making are quite small.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

_POLITICS

// Merle Krigul Euregio Project manager

// Twin City Project Helsinki

// Andres Kurg Architecture critic

Helsinki-Tallinn Euregio started as a cross-border co-operation network in 1999. It is a non-profit association (NPA) established in 2003. The mission of the Euregio is to enhance balanced cross-border integration and to further the creation of Uusimaa-Harjumaa twin-region

The two countries have different historical background, and different social regimes. The po-

“EUREGIO seems more like an intellectual cooperation. “

The cooperation is regarded as good. “Finns are good in planning, Estonians make it faster. That is a winning basis.”

litical practice is very different. The main problem is the social and political instability which causes many practical difficulties.

The interests are different as well on both sides, which was surprising for Twin City Project. The common view is that we know each other very well, are brothers, but in fact we don’t know each other well. We are more like neighbours,

with backs to each other. “

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// Antii Viren Metropolitan Council Helsinki

“... There didn’t come out a lot in the Euregio cooperation with Tallinn.” . “

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

////////////////////////////////////////// BUSINESS It can be said that Tallinn and Helsinki works as

one market but with different weights.

Whereas Finnish companies settled in Estonia weight out the Estonian companies in Finland a hundred times (3,825 finnish; 30-50 estonian), Estonian workers stormed the finnish labour market for better wages. 14

As the greater Helsinki area provides 1 million jobs, the impact of an estimated 35,000 Estonians on Helsinki is not as big as the Finnish business activities in Estonia are. Furthermore, for Finland, Estonia is less interesting as a market but as a gate to Europe. Estonia and particularly Tallinn therefore serves

as a start up area for internationalisation of Finnish companies. This circumstance had a

strong influence in Estonians economics.

From the Estonian point of view the business connections are tightly bound to Finland. From the finnish point of view Estonia might be one important point in the network of Russia-Finland-Europe. The development of business and labour markets are organized on a high level including governments and national trade unions.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

_BUSINESS

//Finpro Urmo Sisask Consultant

//SAK FinnishTrade Union Head office

//Enterprise Estonia Valdar Liive Head office

Finpro is an organization partly financed by the Finnish government with more than 50 offices in more than 30 countries, one of them in Tallinn. Their task is to help Finnish companies in their internationalization process

SAK established an information point in Tallinn about work possibilities and circumstances in Finland. So far it have been 8,000 customers in 5 years. Important for the labour market as SAK cooperation with Estonian media where articles could be published. Due to work with different specialists (for example tax specialists) information could be very concrete.

Enterprise Estonia is working as an Estonian organisation in quite the same field as Finpro. The Task is to attract Finnish companies to come to Estonia and to help them in the process to establish their business.

“ In the past three years we can see a quite clear trend that the companies whose business idea it is to find just cheap labour force are in real trouble because this is not longer an issue here. Companies with a flexible business idea keep here their skilled technology and move the handwork part.”

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“3500 Finnish or partly Finnish companies work in Estonia. The other way round only 30-50 companies of Estonia work in Finland”

“It is also the case that people come to us with their problems on the labour market (misuse, not paid wages and so on). We tried to help also with the support of media and journalists by blaming bad companies.” (SAK)

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

////////////////////////////////////////// TOURISM Tourism is an important issue especially for Tallinn. Due to the extraordinary good ferry connection to Helsinki, one city takes part in the everyday life of the other. The mass of Finnish visitors and especially shopping behaviour for alcohol has also brought a bad mood in this relationship. 16

The main cultural attraction in Tallinn is Old Town. Helsinki is more important to serve various personal interests. Finnish people regard this difference of the cities as a main reason for visit. The greater framework addresses more the Baltic Sea Region where Tallinn and Helsinki are two of many destinations with their own specialities and identities.

In a larger regional framework the connection between Helsinki and Tallinn isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t regarded specifically.

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_TOURISM

NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

// Maarin Ektermann Art critic “… now the ship schedule is very good. It is easier to go to Helsinki than Tartu. It’s really present that it is normal to go for exhibition openings, film festivals, to spend weekend and so on.”

“… for quite some time there is a huge problem that Finns come for cheap vodka and East European beauties. They became a synonym for bad behavior.”

Cruise Baltic organisation is an association of the countries of the Baltic Sea Region established in order to create a cruise option with fully integrated operations between ports and cities. Cruise Baltic promotes the Baltic Sea Region as a network of 26 individual port destinations. Users are promised an “experience out of the

ordinary where you can visit 10 countries on a string and experience oceans of adventures.”

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

////////////////////////////////////// EDUCATION The cases of Finnish school and university contacts demonstrate the importance of local-

ized emerging structures over those established from the top down. The Finnish school

emerged in response to the needs of Finnish families living in Tallinn, and remains flexible enough to accommodate the diverse needs of its students and families. 18

The proposed relationship by Euregio between educational institutions in Tallinn and Helsinki did not succeed in reconciling the already established patterns of University education in the two countries.

As a university-city, Tartu is much more important than the capital Tallinn. The interest of

Helsinkiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s universities to collaborate with institutions in Tallinn is relatively weak. The success of connections between technical universities in both capitals seems more the result of pre-existing similarities in curriculum, rather that the result of regional exchange and integration projects. As in the case of the Finnish School, engagement between educational institutions forms through informal and individual initiatives, and this is largely the preferred approach.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

_EDUCATION

// Twin City Project Regionmaker

Helsinkiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s prominent status in Finland as a University town is not reciprocated in Tallinn, but instead is located in Tartu. Thus, the connection between Tartu and Helsinki is much stronger in this regard, and it was difficult to make the case for establishing links to Tallinn.

// Virpi Hisu Teacher The Finnish School in Tallinn was established in 1996 to provide schooling for Finnish families living and working in Tallinn. In 12 years the school has grown from about a more â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;club-like space for 10-15 pupils to 58 pupils from Grades 1 to 9, and featuring a full education curriculum. A result of its current location in old town is that families moving from Finland tend to move to Old Town or nearby in order to be within walking distance of the school.

Due to a highly educated family background with parents in high positions such as diplomats and managers who move a lot, the average time for a student in school is 3 years. Funding for the school comes from the Finnish state, which closely monitors the student population.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

////////////////////// ART / URBAN CULTURE While Helsinki has had a long tradition of influence on Tallinn in the post-Soviet era, this role is diminishing as artists and cultural workers

Support for artistic and cultural activity in Tallinn is very strong for individual artists and groups, but less so for larger institutions, which must look to external support. In Helsinki, arts organizations and systems are better supported, and these organizations in turn are in a position to of-

fer guidance and advocacy to similar organizations in Tallinn and elsewhere.

_After independence

A key distinction in Tallinn and Helsinki is the recognition of street and everyday culture. In Tallinn, this is currently not very well understood or supported through city municipalities and state cultural organizations. This then falls to local autonomous initiatives.

_During Russian occupation

look to new sites of engagement and influence.

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NETWORKS / Uncertain Geometries in HTR

_ART / URBAN CULTURE

// Andres Kurg Architecture critic “... both cities see the word ‘culture’ very differently, and also cultural capital. Helsinki (Cultural Capital 2000), was actively dealing with urban, everyday culture, street culture, subculture. In

Tallinn (Cultural Capital 2011), so far, the stress is on high culture (concerts, opera, acadamic painting). No one talks about everyday culture. That’s something you don’t want to touch.

I think this is fundamental if we talk about city development, there is no recognition of this urban culture existing in Tallinn, the city is a pragmatic thing, how to get from A to B, how to get these roads built.

// Maarin Ektermann Artist and cultural critic “Finnish television had an important role. You could receive it in Tallinn, people watched it and so it had a huge impact on a whole generation. This opened up a gate to the west for Estonians, because Estonians had to learn Finnish to understand.”

“After Estonias independence the influence of Helsinki was not so important any longer; Finland was not so fascinating for Estonians, they knew it from television.”

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b r a n di n g & i d ent i t y//_ (p o l icy ma kers vs l o c a l d ef i n i t io n

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR

///////////////////// BALTIC SEA TOP-DOWN

the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe seathe baltic seathe seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe the baltic seathe sea baltic sea

A top down approach to this regional identity is still at its nascent stage. Currently its more politically governed, existing in certain networks: tourist, environmental issues, heritage conservation, identity building and so on. This process of belonging to the Baltic region is still a vision far from being realised. But this process has started, like any new region building only time will tell how successful will this new identity be.

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic seathe baltic seathe baltic sea the baltic sea

/////////////////// BALTIC SEA BOTTOM -UP

Common Baltic idea? wouldn’t say we are so alike. Not anymore.....- Baltic tours travel agent

‘Yes, we do! we all share the sea!” Estonian women, 51

Common Baltic Sea identity? There is more than 1000 years cooperation between the countries: in trade and cultural; for ex. Hansa league; this cultural background is uniting, It's unique. So I can say it exists - Finpro

They around the sea -Victoria, Estonian

Cruise Baltic advertises the Baltic Sea as an experience without saying anything about a common identity –

Can be close, business like. Soviet union made this commonality very difficult. They destroyed it. Hansa proved that this can be possible. Good business opportunities. -Henry, Finnish

10 countries, 26 destinations on a string!

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR

ta l l i n n..` modern European city

becoming a typical city in europe

more wealth, modern

developing

many russians

more buildings

garbage on the streets

beautiful old Hansa city growing fast

BY TA L L I N N ER'S

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR

...Identity Identity in this context is understood as a series of relationships based on geographical, cultural and historic affinities.

positive turned 180â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

not cheap anymore

free, enjoyable, developing very fast noisy

free Tallinn

better, becoming world known

more western post-Soviet

old town

BY H ELSI N KER'S

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR

//////////////////// TALLSINKI BOTTOM -UP

_Perception of Tallsinki

Markku & Anu, Finnish, 30

interesting...

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Sarah, Swiss, 27

tallsinki exist already in a way: 45 boats a day, 28 helicopters a day, 11 ďŹ&#x201A;ights

Henry & Paula, Finnish

no, each country must be its own!!!

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BRANDING & IDENTITY / (ad)dressing HTR

////////////////////// TALLSINKI TOP-DOWN Talsinki as a regional brand is an obvious and natural extension of the close relationship between Tallinn and Helsinki, including visitors, trade and investment. Drawing on the successful model of the Oresund Bridge, the idea of a tunnel is currently a symbolic vision of this connection, and suggests that this region would ideally function as a transportation corridor between Europe and Russia.

Several obstacles prevent this vision from becoming reality, including: _Geographical distance, and resulting cost to realize _Uneven relationship between two centres _Distinct political / administrative and cultural boundaries _Lack of will by local inhabitants _Disagreement over borders, identity as a two centre relation (vs. triangle, for example)

Although a common identity doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t necessarily mean loss of individual identities, it will have an impact, and so the concept is approached cautiously. Despite this, the vision of a tunnel is perhaps more powerful as an idea than as a reality, and the idea for interrelation continues to be explored.

there are too many differences in the societies

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the ďŹ rst problem is the sea. it is a separation. if there would be a tunnel the idea would become real

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ma p pi n g what i s t h e ur ba n st r uct ur e of htr

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

//////////////////////////////// MAIN FEATURES HTR is the â&#x20AC;&#x153;doorâ&#x20AC;? to the Gulf of Finland, an area with a large volume of sea traffic - ferries, cruises, containers ships, supertankers.

HELSINKI METRO AREA 500.000 inhabitants (inner core) + 500.000 (outskirt)

In a site of such importance, Helsinki and Tallinn are trying to make a system to compete in the global market and take control of an area in which the principal actor nowadays is Russia. Although a convergence between the two cities is deemed desirable by both parties, and despite favourable conditions ovvn both sides such as economic development, linguistic similarity and economic pragmatism, the path to integration is not so simple and today, more than ever this idea seems obscure.

80 km . 45 boats / day . 28 helicopters / day . 11 flights / day

TALLINN 400,000 inhabitants

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

/////////// NETWORKS MANIFESTATIONS Networks in HTR define a complex area without clear borders rather than a stable geographical unit. Despite branding policies that try to draw a picture of a region as a competitive economic unit,

Region makers are so far unable to implement this region as a unified system. Nevertheless existing cooperations and networks deal in a physical space and have impact on the urban fabric on a city. The main areas of influence can be detected in the location of the main co-operating actors in both cities.

While the urban form of Helsinki reveals a pattern of equal distribution and influence, in

Tallinn the urban form yields to specific clusters and densities.

From an urbanistic view the manifestation of cross-border influenced clusters in Tallinn seem more dynamic than the pattern found in Helsinki. It is possible to trace the following effects of the fragmentation in Tallinnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s urban fabric. business relations tourist relations cultural relations educational relations

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

/////////////// THE ARCHIPELAGO OF HTR If, on one hand it seems that the two cities are trying to carry out some form of cooperation, pushed from the top by lobbies, on the other hand, a constant fragmentation is the main result of this â&#x20AC;&#x153;embedding processâ&#x20AC;?.

In this fragmented space, companies compete for business and privatize urban soil as much as possible. In this fragmented space, minorities struggle looking for better condition in a modernist periphery that risks becoming a big slum. Region makers are unable to implement this region as a whole system. Their approach is better suited for stable contexts such as the WelfareState structure. Despite branding policies that try to draw a picture of a region as competitive economic unit, it is possible to find resistances in many layers of the society. Resistances are also contributing in a way that this region is without a name. As a result Tallinn is in fact a city of borders, physical and mental. These borders run across the urban fabric and divide the area in an archipelago of islands. If we look at the influenced areas of HTR cooperation four significant islands can be detected: the Ferries, the Harbour zone, the Old Town, the New Town.

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

///////////// THE ARCHIPELAGO AND ITS INHABITANTS:ESTONIAN, RUSSIAN AND RUSSIAN-ESTONIAN If, on one hand, there is a spatial fragmentation in the urban structure of the HTR (what we call “archipelago of islands”), on the other hand it is possible to recognize a fragmented social structure, which is originated by different aspects.

This situation led to an increasing marginalization of RSP rights such as being not eligible for highincome jobs and voting privileges. Beside this increasing discrepancy between Estonians and RSP, a third branch seems to be evolving in the Estonian society. This is the case of the RussianEstonians (REs), who have Russian roots (family, language) but also possess the Estonian connections (language, social circles, job opportunities).

During the Soviet era, Russians were the leader segments of society in Estonia. Estonians, on the other side, were working in the frame of Soviet policies and governed by Russian delegate from Moscow. Both Russians and Estonians were living scattered around the city neighborhood without apparent segregation. So far these two social components represented the milieu of the population in the Estonian Region of the Soviet Empire until 90’s. Post independence, Estonia changed its policies for citizenship. With more than 40% Russian Speaking Population (RSP), automatic citizenship was granted only to those who had ancestors prior to Soviet occupation. To obtain citizenship the RSP had to pass an Estonian language exam. Although a minority were able to obtain Estonian citizenship, most of the RSP were cut-off from this integration process, mainly due to Russian cultural resistance to learn the Estonian language.

// Distribution of Estonian, RSP, and REs in Tallinn

RUS 40%

EST 60% 35

FERRIES PIRITA

POHJATALLINN

HARBOUR LASNAMAE

OLD TOWN NEW TOWN HAABERSTI

KRISTIINE KESKLINN

MUSTAMAE

NOMME

by HTR most affected areas less affected areas, mainly residential industrial areas, ports city districts

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

In its early years, Tallinn was an important port of trade between Russia and the Scandinavian countries. During this period, the city gravitated around a medieval city center, expanding later to what is now the surrounding suburbs.

After the Second World War, when Estonia was absorbed by the Soviet Union (1945), the demand for housing increased. In the frame of the Russian occupation, the needs of the people changed and the modernist city appeared to be the logical justification to satisfy the demands for better amenities and standards of living. With the mod-

1900

Early 1900 - inhabitants in Tallinn are concentred in the old city centre and in new garden suburbs

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_THE ARCHIPELAGO AND ITS INHABITANTS

ernisation of the city, movement towards the periphery started increasing urban polarization. The new urban mega-structures were located around the old city centre and suburbs. The first paradigms for Soviet mega-structures were minimal living conditions for all inhabitants and speedy building process in order to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for housing. It was only in the 1970’s and 80’s that those paradigms changed towards a better quality of living space.

50’s

50’s - Rising demand of dwellings in a post war context

60’s

60’s - Tallinn Building Company founded in order to carry out the huge demand of modern dwellings. Affimation of the modernist concept in urbanism. People start to leave suburbs and looking for better conditions (electricity, water, etc.)

Estonia gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. After independence, changes in policies lead to Estonians leaving the Russian periphery and reclaiming the suburbia, which were partially abandoned during the Soviet period (Nomme, Kadriorg, etc.). Present day statistics show that 53% of the population of Tallinn still live in these Soviet mega-structures; most of them being Russian Speaking Population (RSP) and lower class Estonians.

70’s

70’s - Strengthening of Russian periphery and housing program. Better standards for flats and urban space.

90’s

90’s - Estonians start to move in the former suburbs again. Privatization of the old city centre. Segregation of the Russian Speaking Population in the Russian peripheries.

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

/////////////////////// THE EMERGENCE OF A NEW TERRITORY: THE INVERSE SPACE IN THE HTR ARCHIPELAGO

What is the inverse space in this archipelago of islands is really hard to say. It is not easily definable in maps. Its boundaries are always changing according with puzzling rules, which come down from political and economical decisions. We can argue that inverspace is a space where a diversity of people are living in. It is also a space where infrastructures, working or abandoned, define boundaries for islands. Inverspace is also related to an informal layout of place for everyday life, different from the places for tourist entertainment. Inverspace is a space for formal and informal culture, as well, the museum of Estonian architecture is floating between main roads and it is properly part of this in-between space. Inverspace suggest a different way of building Tallinn. If at the begining polarization is the main stream in order to build soviet mega-structure for human living, specialization nowadays appears as the main idea which makes the island concept fact. Understanding the real consistency of this inverspace involves looking into the islands and their inhabitants. At the same time working in the inverspace involves understanding permeability of the borders and special relations between points inside this unstable area. Inverspace, from our point of view, is more than a landscape: it is a territory where people interact in order to build new opportunities for living. At the same time this kind of fluid space is the mirror of an insurgent social group which is by a mutation of Russian Speaking Population due to the new political frame after 1991.

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

///////////////////THE ISLANDS: THE FERRY Every year transport companies compete in terms of speed and leisure activities on-board in order to control the profitable market of the ferry connections between Helsinki and Tallinn. This is the case of a leading company as Viking Line, which next year will launch a new ferry called XPRS. XPRS is a ferry for more than 2,000 people and it

<<â&#x20AC;Śhas been customized to the last detail for the Helsinki-Tallinn route.>>

On board you can find 2 restaurants (French and International kitchen), 1 (Mediterranean) cafĂŠ, 1 (Irish) pub, 1 disco-bar, 1 big shopping area, 1 conference hall for almost 500 seats and a business lounge with wireless connections. Cabins are more than 700 and two decks are for parking. XPRS is also designed for minimized environmental impact.

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_FERRY

MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

/////////////THE ISLANDS: THE HARBOUR According to Port of Tallinn 6.76 million passengers arrived 2006 in Tallinn Old City harbour. There were 299 cruise ship calls in 2006. One time in summer there were 9 cruise ships laying in the port the same time with 10,000 people streamed to the city at once. 7 million passengers in total, most of them shipping between two cities with less than 1,4 million inhabitants. This is the size of an infrastructure that is more than a simple harbor: it is the crucial point for starting to build HTR. The impact of this mass of people on the physical and social structure of the harbor has to be quite strong, but in the planning process it is not an issue. That comes from special business like alcohol stores and big malls. As a result one can see the appearance of the harbour zone, where alcohol stores dominate the first impression. This is a development directed to short term ferry tourists whose main interest lies in getting alcohol at lower prizes than in Helsinki.

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_HARBOUR

MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

//////////////////THE ISLANDS: OLD TOWN Today the old city centre is an island, which is floating on the city of Tallinn. It is part of the tourist industry and is owned by certain branch of the liberal market, which act as lobbies. The result is that a great deal of the old medieval centre is now private. However in the old city we can recognize a great pressure coming from the rest of the city. Young people as well as business man desire to leave and enjoy in the most strong identity place in the city. These desire creates a small fragmentation which lead to identify specific enclaves inside the old city. Beside that, bars, pubs, discos, nightclubs, hotels, resorts, hostels, malls define the new landscape of the land use inside the city. Happy hours, parties, pre-party, VIP cocktails, are part of the everyday vocabulary of this specific part of the city. Tallinna Vanalinn, Tallinnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s old city centre, is not anymore the centre for the city of Tallinn but rather one of the centres in HTR among many.

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_OLD TOWN

MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

/////////////////THE ISLANDS: NEW TOWN A new downtown is springing out from the old urban fabric. Today skyscrapers are defining the new landscape of the rich part of the city. They are physical manifestation of the new business layout which shows its power with the highness of their headquarters. However, these urban objects come from the concept of HTR rather than Tallinn. These huge urban machines are connected in different ways with Helsinki where most of the money come from. Skyscrapers are not only physical manifestations of the new liberal economy in this part of the world, but are also selling new life styles, which are directly impacting the society. They are indifferent to the local issues and their mission is keep the power where it is already rather than prefiguring original scenarios. In a way, skyscrapers are urban antennas, which capture globalization signals.

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_NEW TOWN

MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

//////////////CASE STUDY: THE HARBOUR The HTR island of the Tallinn Harbour is an example of fragmented space, a mixture of structures, functions and users, randomly composing a complex district. The existing differences of these elements in scale and intensity makes this island full of conflicts as well as potentials for further development. 46

Therefore this island in the centre of the four islands affected by HTR needs to be examined closer. The variety of structures and functions provided in the island of the Tallinn Harbour attracts a variety of users coming from very different directions, social backgrounds, and profiles. These

elements come together in different intensities and occupy this fragmented space

following a specific route, performing a specific exploiting ritual.

On the other hand, there is a vast unused space, that is neglected or left aside. Perforating the complexity of the harbour, this vast space -alongside other (nonphysical) gaps- creates borders and fragments the island of the harbour.

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

RUSSIAN MARKET///////////////////// >Structured in long-narrow corrIdors along of them are a small grain of shops. >There are no squares or lounge areas inside but paths like labyrinths. >Languages used inside are, in order, Russian, Finnish and Estonian. >Finnish lower-class is the main user of these spaces. >Security staff, inside the market is geneally Russian speaking. porno shops are permitted.

SHOPING MALL//////////////////////// >Structured in a big grain of shops around a central space used like a square. >Supermarket and Wine Shop have a big retail surface in comparison with the rest of the shops. >Paths inside the mall are as few as possible and they are clear to understand. >Languages used inside are Estonian, Finnish and Russian. >Estonian, finnish and swedish medium/upper classes are the main users of this space. >Staff inside is generally estonian speaker.

EVOLUTION OF THE RETAIL SYSTEM IN THE HARBOR 1990

Russian markets 95% Other shops 5% in sqm

TODAY

Russian markets 60% Malls 40% in sqm

SQUARE

LEGEND ALCOHOL

CLOTHES

BARS OR RESTAURANTS

TOYS

TECHNICAL FACILITIES

SOUVENIRS

MONEY EXCHANGES

COSMETICS

HOUSE KEEPING

PORNOS

FOOD

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MAPPING / What is the urban structure of HTR

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exi t c o n c l usio n

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EXIT / Conclusion

//////////////////////////////////// CONCLUSION The vision of a unified region with a single identity (ex. Talsinki, Hellinn, etc) as proposed by regionmakers such as EUREGIO does not properly account for the way the region functions. The model of the Oeresund region, while successful in its context, does not translate to the more complicated terrain of HTR. Networks in HTR define a complex area without clear borders rather than a stable geographical

unit.

Instead of a unified region, we can understand HTR as a site of multiple networks that are flexible and adapt based on informal relationships between specific actors, often from bottom up. Due to this multilayered network situation where every network serves own goals without overall governance a clear boundary of a greater Helsinki-Tallinn network cannot be drawn. Despite branding policies that try to draw a picture of a region as a competitive economic unit, region makers are so far unable to implement this as a unified system.

Nevertheless existing cooperations and networks deal in a physical space and have impact on the urban fabric on a city.

While the urban form of Helsinki reveals a pattern of equal distribution of influenced areas, these networks manifest themselves in specific islands in the urban form of Tallinn. Old Town, New Town, Sadama market, and ferry are a few significant sites of contact and exchange.

The metaphor of an archipelago, a collection of diverse and distinct islands, is a more accurate model to explore the current and potential interrelation of this region. Especially in Tallinn there exist diverse and distinct islands, characterised by physical appearance, history and speed. These islands are intersected with areas of unclear typology, demand and function.

Surprising enough this archipelago-structure is not interrelated with social or ethnical segregation.

A single identity does not properly account for the way the region functions and is further not desired by local inhabitants.

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EXIT / Conclusion

NETWORKS

BRANDING

flexible / unflexible related / unrelated

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

common / separately

DIAGNOSIS

status quo

open, market oriented network without common branding and with unrelated city development

oresund example

region makerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s benchmark, but seems inapropriate for the situation; too unflexible, common branding not appreciated by inhabitants

P O SSI B L E SC EN A R IO S

what possibilities there are??

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oresund like co-operation but a region without a name; this might serve the regionmakers aim as well as the peoples sense of identity, but the open network structure might be lost

open network with a common branding might work, but unrelated development on a physical level seems undesireable

open network with strengthened relations in urban development; a common branding can be a tool in European competition

open network with strengthened relations in urban development; separate city-branding has especially for Tallinn an advantage in the competition about Baltic Sea tourism;

combine to one strategy

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EXIT / Conclusion

//////////////////// REGIONAL SCENARIOS

NETWORKS . Keeping the flexibility of the network structure BRANDING . Create a brand for a flexible co-operation network, rather than a systematic city cooperation. As an example, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Trans Baltic Bridgeâ&#x20AC;? [Helsinki, and Tallinn would be the key players in this network, but it is open for more]

. Brand the two cities separately; stress their unique characteristics in the collection of Baltic sea cities; in this process, there should be a symbiotic relationship between the two cities. What can they do for each other for mutual development? URBAN DEVELOPMENT . Establish an Urban Planning co-operation between Helsinki and Tallinn to coordinate developments . Work focused on Tallinn as the impact of Hel-Tal connection is felt more here. in Tallinn the impact is more crucial than in Helsinki . _ deal with the amount of tourists _ deal with the urban island structure

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EXIT / Scenarios

///////////////// THE WILDLIFE OF TALLINN Tallinn takes the oportunity to re-transform abandoned areas and green areas along the seashore into wilderness to underline Estoniaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s touristic identity as a land of untouched nature; not one highley designed promenade runs along the shore, but a network of small pathways; the tourist can reside in medievel houses and stalk right in front of the walls. 58

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EXIT / Conclusion

////////////////////////// THE FERRY ISLANDS According to the increasing business relations between Tallinn and Helsinki, the ferries accomodate more and more facilities to make business quicker and therefore even more economic.

BUSINESS

= 59

HELSINKI

TALLINN

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EXIT / Scenarios

//////////////////////// TALLINN DE JANEIRO The ongoing economic success of Tallinn leads to strong development preassure onto the former industrial areas along the shoreline; Tallinn brands itself as the Rio of the North; Old Tallinn lose its status of World Cultural Heitage, but due to economic sucess and beach tourism that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t matter a lot; many citizens will lose the access to the shore again because they are not able to afford; this will be accepted as a neccesary sacrifice by the municipal government.

development areas

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SCENARIO >> THE WILD LIFE OF TALLINN

EXIT / Conclusion

//////////////// THE WILD LIFE OF TALLINN NEW TOWN NEW TOWN

OLD TOWN

Tallinn reacts on the preassure to develop the harbour area as a new high end city district; the city drives out all alcoshops, whorehouses and other undesireable business from this area and takes the oportunity to create a new â&#x20AC;&#x153;outlaw district as a new facette of its identity [as a model serve Amsterdam or Hamburg]

RED TOWN RED TOWN

CREATIVE CREATIVE CENTRE CENTRE FINLAND FINLAND

OLD TOWN OLD TOWN

2 kinds tourists, 2 islands 2 kinds of of tourists, 2 islands

COMMUNITY

NEW TOWN

pushing process

pushing process >> gentrification >> gentrification

FREE FREE COMMUNITY

NEW CITY NEW CITY DELELOPMENT

DELELOPMENT

ALCO CITY PARTY HALL BIG BROTHEL

ALCO CITY

PARTY HALL

BIG BROTHEL

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EXIT / Scenarios

///////////////////////// TALLINN FROM EAST

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EXIT / Conclusion

//////////////////////// TALLINN FROM WEST

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EXIT / Scenarios

ADREESSING THE SCENARIO ANALYSIS

////////////// ADRESSING THE SCENARIOS ANALISYS

SCENARIOS

HTR

DRIVING FORCES

ANALYSIS KEEP OR DROP OUT?

ISLANDS

MERGING ISLAND

BIFORCATION (WAYS TO SCENARIOS)

TASKS

RELATIONS/ACTIONS/RESULTS

POLITICAL - ECONOMIC SOCIAL - TECHNOLOGICAL

KEEP OR DROP OUT? POLITICAL - ECONOMIC SOCIAL - TECHNOLOGICAL

financial support to improve island physical structure of each island financial support for improve social fabric of each island decentraization and empowerment according with island mieliu

CONFIRM ISLAND Better quality of the life inside them. HTR becomes a multipolar city based on strong identity clusters, which will reforce social awarness and responsabilities.

SPECULATION BANLIEUES IN TALLINN

FORMAL CULTURE TALLINN 2011

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WHAT ABOUT THE INVERSPACE?

MERGING ISLAND in this scenario the “inverspace” does not exit anymore. no big shift in the social structure. organic planning of the region in every details. Tallinn will converge to Helsinki, perhaps lacking the real problems and demands of the local society. City efficiency will decrease as well as social identity and backgrounds.

ABANDONED SPACE VENICE

MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY AND INFORMAL CULTURE SUB-TALLINN

tax police in order to allow people to move and set-up in other part of the HTR physical restructuring in large part of the HTR political influence on the business level in order to drive the development of the HTR

THE ONLY POSSIBLE SCENARIO WOULD BE: ISOTROPIC DECENTRALIZATION ACCORDING TO PHYSICAL AND ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY

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EXIT / Conclusion

SUB-TALLINN

///////////////////////////////////// SUB-TALLINN Sub-tallinn is a multicultural city where informal

sub-tallinn is a multicultural city where informal cultural (sub-culture) is the main milieu of the inverspace. in this place people - russian-estonianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, young people, artist, minorities - act in order to enrich the archipelago diversity. the inverspace become the places for discuss together where instead islands are the place for business, quite living, formal cultural, tourism and work.

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cultural (sub-culture) main milieu of the in- city wh sub-tallinn isis the a multicultural verspace. tural (sub-culture) is the ma

In this place people -Russian-Estonian, young people, artist, minorities- act in order to enrich inthethis place people - russian-estonian archipelago diversity. artist, - act in ord The inverspace becomeminorities the places for discuss together where instead islands are the place for archi business, quite living, formal cultural,the tourism the inverspace become places for 65 and work.instead islands are the place where fo

living, formal cultural,

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EXIT / Scenarios

///////////////////////////////// ISOTROPIC CITY

Isotropic city is the place where islands do not exit anymore. The space inside the city is a homogeneity whole where through plan and calculation planners decide where will be the next city centre. standards are spread-out around the city without any distinction. Social identity, shift in background, micro-culture do not belong to this city. Infrastructures and connectivity are the main issue to achieve.

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EXIT / Conclusion

TALLINN 2011

//////////////////////////////////// TALLINN 2011 Tallinn 2011 is the city capital of the culture in Europe. Here the inverspace serves to provide space for mega-cultural space. Planners will use these big boxes for renewing large parts of the inverspace. Famous architects will be invited to design new landmarks for a competitive city. In this way Tallinn will achieve is main target: to be the most dynamic and contemporary city in the EU.

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EXIT / Scenarios

////////////////////////////////////////////// VENICE

If Tallinn will not change its urban strategies the inverspace will die, this means that a large part of the city will be an unlivable place for the inhabitants. Poor people, riots, pollution will act on this inconvenient landscape. Inhabitants will avoid going through it forever. The archipelago will be no longer an urban metaphor but a physical place as well. Inverspace will be nothing like the surface of the water where the ferry ships on.

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EXIT / Conclusion

////////////////////////////// URBAN CHANGES One of the present iconâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s of tallinn, viru keskus fades into oblivion... when the needs of the market change...

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a p p en dix a rt ic l es

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APPENDIX / Articles

/////////////////////////////////////////// ARTICLES

I 72

_ABOUT REGION MAKING

n the Helsinki – Tallinn case the top down attempts of forming a common region are pursued in the framework of Euregio. It started as a cross-border cooperation network in 1999 and is established as a non-profit association (NPA) in 2003. The mission of Euregio is to enhance balanced cross-border integration and to further the creation of Uusimaa-Harjumaa twin-region. The gradual development of an integrated crossborder region is based on the principle that both parts gain from intensified connections and cooperation, and that balanced interdependence of the regional economies makes the two Capital Regions together stronger and more visible than alone. A main actor in this process is Merle Krigul, Secretary General of Helsinki-Tallinn Euregio, with an office in Tallinn. An important partner on Finnish side is Twin City Project in Helsinki. Krigul seems very optimistic regarding the process of cooperation. The cooperation is regarded as good. “Finns are good in planning, Estonians make it faster. That is a winning basis.” The partners in Helsinki seem less convinced. For them the cooperation has not resolved as rapidly and effectively as they would have liked.

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For the Twin City project the cooperation has shown difficulties and obstacles unknown to the partners at the time. There were a number of surprises: _Cultural differences that were originally thought minor were big in reality. _The two countries have different historical backgrounds, and different social regimes. _The interests are different as well on both sides, which was surprising for Twin City Project. _Finally the political practice is very different, the social and political instability caused many practical difficulties for the development of the region. Twin City representatives mention a lot of disappointments in the attempts of connecting Helsinki’s institutions with Tallinn’s. One example is the case of University collaboration project. Tartu is the leading University centre in Estonia, and therefore the interest on the Finnish side to collaborate with Tallinn was not so intense. Nevertheless Tallinn’s Technical University, Art Academy and some small private schools could be connected to Helsinki’s institutions. Another project was the exchange of officials to work in the other city workplace for two weeks, as it is easier to cooperate when you know how the other side operates. The result of the program was that all those exchanged people where Finnish, not vice versa. The program didn’t allow this, and it was much too early to attempt this. (Twin City) For Twin City every field of cooperation is bothered by this “big brother / small brother” syndrome. Asking Krigul about obstacles for collaboration between the cities yields the opposite impres-

sion. For her there are no obstacles, only that people are not used to think cross-border and small things are different. Another issue for the construction of a common region is the connection between the two cities. “There is an idea of a tunnel for trains. At the moment the tunnel is virtual, but the interconnection to Helsinki is very good. But there is a missing link in transit.” (Merle Krigul) According to the Twin City representatives, “The tunnel is one of these long term visions, and not unimportant, maybe more influential when not realized, keeping motivation and imagination.” But the tunnel issue has now reached a new phase. It was first introduced after the Estonian independence. An association devoted to this purpose was established consisting of mountain engineers of the city of Helsinki. Euregio has in 2008 the task to study the case of the tunnel and organizing a conference. According to Andres Kurg, urbanism critic in Tallinn, Tallinn already has reserved a piece of land for the future tunnel entrance. Regarding the influence of Oresund Region. Twin city has studied this case quite closely. There is a key difference, in that the Oresund project was from the very beginning a political project, decided to do so at high levels. The state gave a strong political push towards integration. With this political and public support a wide, varied network of cooperation could be created. A number of cooperation agencies for many purposes to the further integration process were established. In the Tallinn-Helsinki case the locals have been

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quite uncooperative. The connections between Helsinki and Tallinn form more on grassroots level among the people in everyday contact, between theatres and galleries and on business level. For Andres Kurg, Euregio seems more like an intellectual cooperation. He doesn’t think there is any cooperation on the municipal level, it’s mostly happening between people themselves. For Antii Viren, Helsinki Metropolitan Council, not much has resulted from Euregio cooperation with Tallinn. The reason for continuing the collaboration nevertheless is for Twin City “…a very strong common understanding that we have more to win by joining resources… …The common view is that we know each other very well, are brothers, but in fact we don’t know each other well. We are more like neighbours, with backs to each other. “

Finpro is an organization partly financed by the Finnish government with over 50 offices in more than 30 countries, one of them in Tallinn. Their task is to help Finnish companies in their internationalization process. In the Estonian case this consists mainly of middle sized companies, but large are not excluded. Finpro conducts market analyses for their clients and helps them to enter the market by registering the company, setting first meetings and so on. Experts in Helsinki are always available for follow up consultation. Enterprise Estonia as an Estonian organization is involved in quite the same process. They attract Finnish companies to come to Estonia and help them to establish international contacts.

ery strong connections between Tallinn and Helsinki exist in business and labour markets. These connections are so strong that Mr. Cisak of Finpro Estonia declares “…we can talk about one market, although it is the case of different countries …”.

SAK is an organization related to the Finnish Trade Union. In 2002 they started the setup of an information point in Tallinn who should inform about work possibilities and circumstances in Finland. An Estonian partner was the Centre of Estonian Trade Union. Motivation for this project was that in 2002 Estonia wasn’t yet a member of the EU and the Finnish Trade Union feared a flood of low waged Estonian workers. So the idea was to establish a collaborating network of Finnish and Estonian Trade Unions to avoid the separation of the labour market into two segments, a well paid and low paid one.

That this process is directed, governed and supported by larger organisations can be seen in the cases of Finpro, Enterprise Estonia and SAK.

By now Finnish owned or partly owned companies in Estonia count at 3,825, the biggest number abroad. In comparison there are around 700 Finn-

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_ABOUT BUSINESS RELATIONS

ish or partly Finnish companies registered in Germany. (Finpro) On the other hand only 30-50 companies of Estonia work in Finland (Enterprise Estonia). On the level of labour force SAK knows that about 20,000 Estonians live permanently in Finland. no numbers about commuters, but are estimated at between 10-20,000. Finpro declares that there are no special sectors that are interested in doing business in Estonia. Their clients come from a variety of sectors, but current trends show more emphasis to IT, high technology medicine and genetics.

The reasons for coming to Estonia have also changed. “ In the past three years we can see a quite clear trend that the companies whose business idea it is to find just cheap labour force are in real trouble because this is not longer an issue here. Companies with a flexible business idea keep here their skilled technology and move the handwork part.” (Finpro) The majority of Finnish companies who operate in Eastern Europe have headquarters in Tallinn. The first step of internationalization for Finnish companies is often Estonia. It is small, there is lower risk and it is easier to start. For SAK the most interested group for work in Finland are construction builders (20%). Strongly represented is also the service sector and cleaning personal, metal workers, bus drivers and farm

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and garden workers. A new group of interests is built up by the sector of health care.

tion for specialists in metal work, industry and service sector. (SAK)

At the beginning of the 90s people came to stay in Finland. Now most are commuters. Estonians who stay permanently are quite well integrated according to a research project of the University of Finland. Their social networks are good, and most of them want to integrate and keep their own identity. Estonian commuters are mostly blue-collar workers. They go home on weekends, or when they stay further away they go home once a month. Commuters are not very well integrated because they don’t really know the Finnish culture. Most Finns who live and work in Estonia have high education (SAK).

Important for the labour market also was SAK cooperation with Estonian media where articles could be published. Information has really reached the people. Due to work with different specialists (for example tax specialists) information could be very concrete. “It is also the case that people come to us with their problems on the labour marked (misuse, not paid wages and so on). We tried to help also with the support of media and journalists by blaming bad companies.” (SAK)

According to Finpro the average income in Estonia is 740 Euro per month, but this is wide spread, especially in the countryside the income is very low. In the city the gap is getting smaller and smaller all the time. According to SAK the wages of construction builders have increased. Wages of doctors, teachers and nurses, on the other hand, are still quite small. It will take at least another 10 to 20 years until there are really similar wages. Education in Estonia is quite good, especially higher education, high schools and university. But there is as everywhere a lack in high skilled, high technology blue-collar education. The biggest obstacle on the market is a lack of people. (Finpro) Finland is now considering active labour integra-

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first of this kind by then. It was a success. Now there is also one in Riga. Quite interesting is the size of agencies dealing in these networks. Finpro has 3 persons in the Tallinn office, SAK 2 people in Tallinn and 1 full time and 1 part time person in Helsinki.

_ABOUT TOURISM NETWORKS AND ITS IMPACT

n the case of tourism Tallinn is tightly bound to Helsinki, but has also achieved international recognition in recent years.

So far at SAK’s information office in Tallinn have been 8,000 customers in 5 years. Especially in the first years the interest was enormous. 80% of them were of Estonian language. The attitude in Finland is not so positive toward the Russians and Estonians have less language problems. There is little discrimination of Estonians, but there is much discrimination of Russians. (SAK)

According to figures of Port of Tallinn in 2006, 299 cruise ship calls were managed by the Port. Only Copenhagen and St. Petersburg had a little more in the Baltic Sea.

Antii Viren from Helsinki Metropolitan Council thinks that in the future not so many Estonians will work in Helsinki but there will be a lot of cooperation in business. For recruiting workforce Russia is more interesting. As a market Estonia is too small.

The Port of Tallinn is proud of these figures because cruises are the best marketing for the country. It is reaching international clients such as Americans, English and Japanese. “10 years ago nobody knew Estonia or Tallinn, now a lot of people book cruises to Baltic Sea with the special wish to stop in Tallinn.” (Port of Tallinn)

For Finpro the corridor is not only Tallinn-Helsinki but further to Poland and the rest of Europe. Also other countries are interested in connections to Estonia. There are similar agencies like Finpro from Sweden, UK, and Denmark for example. For SAK the project of the office in Tallinn was the

At one point in summer there were 9 cruise ships lying in the port the same time, with 10,000 people streamed to the city at once.

This newly achieved fame is strongly connected to the Cruise Baltic organization, where the countries of the Baltic Sea Region have joined forces in order to create a cruise option with fully integrated operations between ports and cities.

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Within this network the relation between Helsinki and Tallinn isn’t regarded as something special and therefore isn’t stressed. The stress lies more on the experience of Northern Europe as a theme and in this framework the specialties of 26 destinations, an “experience out of the ordinary where you can visit 10 countries on a string and experience oceans of adventures.” (www.cruisebaltic. com). In this framework Tallinn stands for the oldest city in the Northern region where you can find medieval mystery. In all highlights promoted you will find in the Old Town. Helsinki on the other hand is regarded as a gate between East and West with its Swedish and Russian influences. There you can find the spirit of a progressive high tech push and a rich cultural life. Nevertheless the tourist connection between Helsinki and Tallinn is very strong. According to figures of Port of Tallinn 6.76 million passengers reached Tallinn in 2006. This figures contains also business travelers and commuters but nevertheless for a city of 1.4 million inhabitants the tourist impact is enormous. The Baltic Tours Travel agency in Tallinn speaks of 80% Finns of all the incoming visitors. The interests of Finnish people in Tallinn exist on many levels. According to Maarin Ektermann, art critic, the early tourists from Finland searched for some kind of “Eastern Europe Exotic”. Nowadays Finnish tourists come for spa, theatre and leisure, for shopping or hairdressers and doctors.

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The impact of this mass of people on the physical and social structure of a city has to be quite strong, even if the Urban Department of Tallinn argues that the tourists don’t have influence on the planning process. “ “Imagine nearly 7 million passengers for a city with 400,000 citizens in a country with 1,3 million inhabitants.” (Port of Tallinn) In Tallinn always more services are directed to the Finnish tourists (hairdressers, bus lines, harbour commercial areas, …). But in the planning process it is not an issue. That comes from special business like alcohol, dentists and big malls planned with the Finnish. “ As a result of this point of view one can see the appearance of the harbour zone, where alcohol stores dominate the first impression. This is a development directed to short time ferry tourists whose main interest lies in getting alcohol at lower prizes than in Helsinki. The impact of Finnish shopping behaviour especially in connection with alcohol can be observed in the harbour area. This has also brought a bad mood into the relation between Estonians and Finns. “… For quite some time there is a huge problem that Finns come for cheap vodka and East European beauties. They became a synonym for bad behavior.” (Maarin Ektermann ) Another tourist group’s interest lies beyond the harbour. “… The port is not the destination for the people; That is the city. But the port is the gate to the city, it is a bonus that the harbour is directly at the edge of the city.” (Port of Tallinn)

According to qualitative interviews on ferries, harbour and city centre, Old Town is the highest regarded part of the city. Tourists praise its beauty and especially Finns like the medieval flair they cannot find in Helsinki. Ektermann mentions that the Old Town is so crowded with tourists in summer that Estonians avoid going there. This is a pattern you can find in every city strongly affected by tourism. According to Ektermann a second centre for Estonians doesn’t really exist. It’s more the rim of old town where special points develop where Estonians go instead. These include for example Virumall and the area around Freedom Square.

This impact of tourism isn’t only changing Tallinn’s social map but has also leading to a change in facilities now directed mainly to tourists and unavailable to many citizens. “In Old Town was a shift after the renovation. The streets are full with tourists but still there live people. But all the restaurants and everything is very expensive.” (Urban Department in Tallinn) For a small but still significant group of tourists culture and recreation are reasons for visit. They take the opportunity to enjoy high culture, especially in the field of music, and use the offers of spas and seashore. The wellness and recreation sector is a growing one and directly related to tourism. Outside these areas Old Town, New Town, harbour area and seashore the physical influence of tourism cannot be detected.

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In Lansnamae, Mustamae or Kopli one does not find direct evidence that Tallinn is a city with a high attraction of tourists. Only perhaps that the sub-centres in the districts get more importance to the locals and the overall economy is growing, also due to tourism

ier to go to Helsinki than Tartu. It’s really present that it is normal to go for exhibition openings, film festivals, to spend weekend and so on.” (Maarin Ektermann)

An important issue in the impact of tourism is the pressure the tourist force can bring to the further development. For cruise shipping for example the first impression of a city is very important. As mentioned by the Architects Association the appearance of the harbour area is criticised by cruise companies and threatens to spare the city on their routes were done. As a result, the municipality is forced to take action regarding its physical structure due to tourist influence.

_ABOUT EDUCATION NETWORK

he following illustrations give two very different perspectives on the educational connections between Tallinn and Helsinki.

Whether a greater population would appreciate increasing tourism also during low season is still a question.

Case 1 The Finnish School in Tallinn was established in 1996 to provide schooling for Finnish families living and working in Tallinn. In the 12 years of it’s operation, the school has grown from about a more “club-like” space for 10-15 pupils to 58 pupils from Grades 1 to 9, and featuring a full education curriculum. Students at the school are primarily from Finnish families, but also include some of Estonian / mixed Swedish identity. Due to a highly educated family background with parents in high positions such as diplomats and managers who move a lot, the average time for a student in school is three years. There is a fluctuation of 30% of the pupils every year. Several students were fluent in several languages, including Swedish, Estonian and English. The increase of students is tightly related to the opening of the Estonian market and the interest of Finnish business in town.

On the other hand Helsinki has also become part of everyday life for Estonians. “… now the ship schedule is very good. It is eas-

The school is part of a network of ten similar institutions located throughout Europe, including Luxembourg, St. Petersburg and Tartu and is di-

What is missing on Tallinn’s part is some attraction for the low season. “I think tourism will increase if we can find something to do during low season, some activities closer to city. The winter capital is near to Latvia in South Estonia. There you can ski and do sports. But it is so far away for tourists. We only have one airport. So you can’t drive there just for one weekend. We need something near Tallinn to attract people. I don’t even know what this should be. During high season it’s not a problem.” (Baltic Tours Agency)

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rectly connected to the Finnish Education Government. Funding for the school comes from the Finnish state, which closely monitors the student population. While the school is open to Estonians as well, their status is not subsidized either by the Finnish or Estonian governments and so requires an annual fee of 5000 Euros The school was originally located South Tallinn in Viimsi, but later relocated to Old Town to be more central to it’s students, who came from several parts of town. A result of its current location in old town is that families moving from Finland tend to move to Old Town or nearby in order to be within walking distance of the school. Compared to the educational structure of Estonian there are some discrepancies in curriculum, but for the most part is similar. There was no indication of systematic interrelation to Estonian schools, but by virtue of it’s location, informal connections on the individual student level have emerged. An Estonian school in Finland doesn’t exist yet but there are plans to open one. Case 2: As part of the Euregio Twin City project, an educational component was pursued but ran into unanticipated obstacles. The distinctions between the two cities didn’t yield many collaborative opportunities. Helsinki’s prominent status in Finland as a University town is not reciprocated in Tallinn, but instead is located in Tartu. Thus, the connection between Tartu and Helsinki is much stronger in this regard, and it was difficult

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to make the case for establishing links to Tallinn. Technical Universities in Tallinn and Helsinki, on the other hand, are much better related and Euregio took the challenge to build these connections. These connections included joint programs and student exchange, but more importantly encouraged the exchange of teachers and collaboration in training programs. Currently, these technical universities have established their own connections on more informal levels, and don’t want Euregio as mediator anymore.

_ABOUT ART AND URBAN CULTURE

elsinki has for a long time been a cultural bridge for Tallinn. Individual intellectual exchanges between the two centres were strong already in 1873, and up to the 1940s. This link was renewed in the 1960s. During the Soviet era, Finnish culture -received through television and radio and the reintroduction of ferry travelrepresented an important lifeline to the west and a different worldview. Helsinki still maintains a strong influence, and important art centres, such as Kappeli (located in the former Nokia Cable Factory) and Chiasma Art Museum benefit from strong state level support, as well as that of international networks. Comparable organizations in Tallinn, such as Polymer cultural factory and the emerging Kultural Kettle are joined in these networks, and benefit from external support from nearby Finland. This relationship between countries is a bit one

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sided. It was always important for Estonia to have a friendly neighbour (support for independance) and Finland has been that model. It is important to note, however, that the cultural influence of Helsinki has shifted significantly since Estonian independence. The possibility of finding new points of reference within an unlimited field was extremely appealing, and Finland in some respects became viewed with a degree of quaint nostalgia. The diverging programs of cultural capital projects between Helsinki (Cultural Capital 2000) and Tallinn (Culture Capital 2011) demonstrate a key distinction between how culture is understood in both cities. Andres Kurg notes that compared to the Helsinki approach, which actively encompassed street culture and everyday life, the upcoming 2011 program for Tallinn so far emphasizes high culture, including concerts, opera, academic painting. This omission of urban culture points is in sharp contrast to the rich cultural activity that takes place in Tallinn, but which nevertheless falls under the radar and is not directly engaged as an official manifestation of the city. Maarin Ektermann notes that “The state hasn’t developed a process to critically analyze what is going on and to fully appreciate how art can function this way.” State funding and support for artistic in Tallinn (and Estonia in general) is strong on an individual, level, including funding programs for production and representing Estonia abroad through international exhibitions and research travel.

Larger institutional framing and systems are not as well supported, and so artistic activity tends to be more spontaneous or supported through external projects. Top down EU programs for financing cooperation projects between different countries has a significant influence on mobility of art and cultural producers. Another important factor was the influence of the Soros Centre, established by George Soros in the 1990s throughout Central and Eastern Europe, these centres established important regional networks as well as supporting new artistic practices such as new media and performance.

These centres also inadvertently fueled a degree of “Eastern exoticism”. With Tallinn’s arts and cultural activity now increasingly resembling art the world over, the importance of ‘Baltic’ as a unifying identity is fading.

_ABOUT BALTIC SEA IDENTITY

he countries that share the Baltic Sea: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia and Sweden, are now coming together to create a common ‘regional identity’. The presence of this connection around the Baltic Sea goes back to the 13th and 14th centuries with the start of the League of Hanseatic Towns. Now centuries later this identity is getting revamped, by economics, developments and tourism. The presence of this transformed regional identity has become the new mantra for this region.

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But how far has this regional identity present in most discussion forums sunk in locally?

The Iron Curtain that once divided the Baltic Sea has sunk into oblivion, an now many share this vision of a region reborn. “The New Hanseatic league”, “creation of the Council of Baltic States”, “The Top of Europe”, ”Amber Gateway”, and other creatively catchy phrases are used to sell this region for events and projects, but still have not gone far beyond this surface appearance. There are co-operations at various levels acting to create this regional identity: Baltic Sea Heritage cooperations, Baltic Development Forum, Baltic Sea networks and so on. All these forums believe in branding the Baltic Sea region as a coherent region with a distinct profile that can compete more effectively in the global marketplace in terms of economic growth, educational levels, innovation, research and development. The idea of a common Baltic Sea identity is received with a mixed response at the individual level. For some networks this identity exits. For tourism the region is sold to the public as one, for example the Baltic cruises, which are fast gaining popularity in the West. But this identity doesn’t give the impression to have seeped in further than the surface appearance. The promotors initially talk of the region, then switch to local brandings: Tallinn the Hansa city, Riga is the jewel in the Crown; the former Paris of the North, Copenhagen’s famous Little mermaid statue and Tivoli Gardens and so on are but a few examples that are used to sell this region.

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As the Port of Tallinn officials put it, ” we sell the region as one, then we concentrate only on Tallinn, as it’s a competition to sell ones own region.” It is also interesting to see what the local population perceives about this regional identity. The answer to the question about identity of the Baltic Sea gets extreme answers, ranging form similarities in culture to how Russia made this impossible and that the Hansa proved that this is possible. The most astute answer was from this 40-year-old Estonian woman who said, “ yes we do, we all share the sea!”

_ABOUT REGION BRANDING

he idea of Talsinki as a commonly branded region is in one sense an obvious and natural extension of the close relationship between Tallinn and Helsinki. Since Estonia’s independence, this connection has expanded rapidly. Travel between these to centres accounts for the most international traffic. This traffic consists largely of tourists, predominantly from Finland, but also workers going between the two countries. Finland also accounts for 60-70% of foreign investment in Estonia. Region makers such as Euregio and Finnpro have explored a number of projects to expand this relationship in order to impose a more systematic and integrated connection. The intent is to establish this ‘Talsinki region’ as an important and competitive space for investment and transit corridor to Europe and Russia

The current connection through ferries does not adequately suit the desired speed and volume of traffic in goods and people desired. Therefore, the idea of a bridge -or more realistically a tunnel- has been put forward on several occasions. The idea of a Tunnel is clearly influenced by the success of the Oresund Region, and with pressure / encouragement from larger regional organizations such as the European Union. Several logistical obstacles have so far prevented this tunnel from becoming a reality. The first is the fact of geography. Compared to the relatively short expanse of the Oresund, the 80 km separating Helsinki and Tallinn. More directly at issue is the expanse of administrative and political systems. The effort of changing laws, infrastructure, and shared systems and networks (ex. bus tickets) is too difficult at this time. Compared again to the Oresund Bridge, a tremendous amount of political will at all levels was necessary to initiate and realize this project. Equally, if not more important was drawing on public acceptance and a history of engagement between the two countries. While Helsinki and Tallinn have long historical connections, currently the relationship between them is still developing following Estonia’s recent independence. This relationship is also still based on economic discrepancies, and the resulting flows of workforces and cheap goods to Helsinki. Beyond these flows, the distinctions in political, economic and social framings resist any deeper connections at this time.

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Finally, there is a local resistance to the idea by inhabitants of both centres. This is due to several reasons, including cultural differences, and the desire to maintain differences and autonomy of both places. Many, such as Maarin Eckterman see it as unnecessary as a formal relationship. Following independence, she suggests, local actors in Tallinn desire to explore new international relationships beyond Finland, which becomes in a sense, just another neighbour. Others, such as Merle Krigul (Euregio) are familiar, even supportive of the concept of regional integration, but don’t like the term Talsinki. Krigul finds it provocative and without a local, intuitive basis. This view is bolstered by our interviews with local inhabitants -both Finnish and Estonian- for most of whom the concept is completely unheard of, and when considered is not well received. Merle Krigul (Euregio / Twin City Project) stresses that idea of a common identity doesn’t preclude the dissolving of each as separate identities, but rather that a third common identity is formed. However, it is clear that this joined identity would have direct impact on the local contexts. The existence of the tunnel as a concept is perhaps more powerful than the reality of such a connection.

_ABOUT TALLINN’S IDENTITY

allinn’s long history as an important port town in the Hansa period, and its future promise following independence are twin poles of influence on its identity.

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Visitors from Helsinki encounter Tallinn first from the habour, and services in this area reveal that Tallinn is on a major level understood as a source of cheap products (mostly alcohol) and services (spas). This area remains otherwise underdeveloped and unrealized, due in large part because of the restriction of access to the harbour in the Soviet era. The exception was Linnehall, constructed for the 1980 Moscow Olympics, and preserved as an UNESCO world heritage site. This building remains an important icon for inhabitants of Tallinn specifically, and has also been contested site of plans to accommodate a new waterfront, harbour infrastructure and city development. Vocal public support of this structure as a symbol of Tallinn, particularly as the rest of the city develops, has so far preserved this building from development. Old Town remains a dominant site when considering Tallinn’s identity. Following Estonian independence, this place became increasingly important as a touristic site, particularly for Finnish, Russian and other visitors, but also for local inhabitants. Iconic structures such as Toompea, Old Thomas, and a multitude of shops and services preserve this as a nostalgic ‘Hansa’ town full of ‘medieval mystery’. With the rediscovery of real estate value, development has created a new city centre focused around the Viru shopping centre and Rottermann districts. Located adjacent to Old Town and the harbour, this site serves as the primary site of investment for business. Within this site, the Viru hotel is a prominent icon. Built by Finnish architects, this hotel was very important for Finnish

travelers in the 70s and 80s, and remains a central focus for visitors today, including the newly built Viru shopping centre. In addition to these three sites, Tallinn’s identity as a Soviet city comes predominately from the housing districts at its edges, such as Lasnamae. These areas are known but not frequented by or visible to foreign visitors, with the exceptions of nearby Kadriog Park and KUMU Art Museum. Socially and culturally, Tallinn aligns itself more to a Nordic, and more recently international identity, in contrast to it’s traditional ‘Baltic state orientation. Predominately, this has been due to its close connection to Helsinki (compared to other cities in the Baltic States such as Riga). There is also a strong recognition of the Russian population, which comprises 50% of the inhabitants of Tallinn, but which also is understood as being at a remove from ethnic Estonians.

_ABOUT CONFLICTS, BORDERS AND COUNTERMANIFESTATIONS

alsinki as a proposed regional identity is undermined by the lack of proper attention to the recent historical development of the region, in particular the implications of 50 years of Soviet occupation of Estonia. While there has been much effort to re-align Tallinn to a European trajectory, the fact of Russian influence and integration within the city often runs counter to this idea of Talsinki.

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Talsinki is based in large part on the affinity of Estonian and Finnish identity, as it is manifest in the two capital cities. This idea does not effectively include Russian identity. Development proposals of the harbour area, including proposals for an opera house where there is currently a market (consisting predominately of Russian owned and operated shops) and casino seek to erase these ‘undesirable’ uses. 80

There is also a tendency for conflating Soviet and Russian identity, leading to tensions between these two ethnic demographics in the city. This was most recently seen during the riots in April 2007, following the removal of the bronze soldier monument commemorating the fallen Soviet soldiers during the Second World War. The ongoing tensions between Estonia and Russia have extended down to the two ethnic communities in Tallinn. How to resolve and integrate ethnic Russians into this idea of Talsinki is unclear. Conversely, the influence of St. Petersburg as an economic and political force is not considered in this relationship. In many respects, St. Petersburg shares more affinity with Helsinki than does Tallinn. As Tallinn’s red-hot economy cools, St. Petersburg may eventually become a more appealing trading partner. As mentioned elsewhere, Estonia’s recent independence has led to a desire to seek out new connections and relations beyond the already established with Helsinki. Air travel is expanding rapidly, and Tallinn now operates in a constellation of European cities, including Berlin, London and Brussels.

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Alternative networks also exist within the two countries, as relations are explored outside the borders of the cities. For example, Universities in Helsinki find more affinity in collaborations with the University of Tartu, and organizations like the Estonian Institute look to northern Finland rather than the saturated Helsinki context. The instability of the governance and economic structure of Tallinn has been a significant roadblock to integration efforts as well. While it is clear that there are strong affinities between these two centres, integration at the level of economics, politics and infrastructure might be too great an expanse to bridge.

_ABOUT DIFFICULTIES IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT

ccording to the Urban Department of the city of Tallinn the crucial problem for the city development is that the city of Tallinn owns very little land. Andres Kurg states that a reason for the lack of land is privatisation. Within the municipality, he notes “… the general tendency at the moment is privatizing things as much as possible, Throughout the history Tallinn Municipality has never owned so little land as now, so they maybe have 2% of the land property in the central area, and there is a lot of land that belongs to the state which is unreformed land, military area, so different kind of factory areas and industrial areas . Throughout the 1990ies there has been a strong tendency

to privatize all possible land, so lets say when in the 20s the municipality had about 20 or 30% of ownership in the city, now it is about 2% and so it is kind of absurd, and it means that the city can’t really do anything ...” Regarding this privatisation, The Urban Department of Tallinn responds that to sell land or not is a decision on the State level. When land was returned to their former owner after Soviet occupation, the State didn’t turn back former municipal property to the cities. “… When the city does need land from the state it is difficult. You have really to prove why you need it. The state is quite narrowly focused and doesn’t think on a larger scale. But the State also has to collaborate with the city, because if the State wants to do something, they have to do it through the city.” (Kerttu Martin) For Twin City Project in Helsinki a reason for all development difficulties lays in the complicated relations between capital city and State. There is a very harsh and difficult political confrontation that looks like pure party politics. Whatever Tallinn wants, says or does something the government opposes and vice versa. Both want votes in next election and act accordingly. According to Andres Alvers, architect, “…the biggest obstacle is the missing culture of a larger view” , also on the city level. An example for Alvers is the harbour area, where the further development is directed. “… a lot of Western architects came then and Estonians also organized workshops themselves for the further development.

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But they got no real answers. The city government has its own plans how to deal with the land.” Kurg supports this point of view. “… the city was the owner of this land and they gave it to an operator to develop in the early 90s. The operating company organized a lot of competitions here, different kind of visions of what could be done. There were shopping streets, living, mixed use, promenades, all this kind of nice plans, and plans to move the municipal building to the waterside. Then the mayor changed 2 or 3 times in 99/2000, and [the new mayor] said no, we want to do it on our own. They paid the operator I don’t know how many millions, said ‘you’re work here is done, goodbye’ and they sold this land away to different developers.” Another problem seems to be the different aims of the actors involved in the development. Alvers notes: “… The city government has an architecture office that planned the development of the harbour area. But they planned mainly housing areas. The architects association doesn’t think it’s good.” And according to the Port of Tallinn: “We cannot develop as we want. There are a lot of restrictions and borders everywhere. It is like in every town. First there is the port, than the city develops around and after the city tells the port to go away. So we have to find a way how the city can develop and we can develop. Working together with

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the city is necessary. At the moment there are too many parties involved, too many different developers.” Alvers believes that somebody has to govern the process and that should be the city. There should also be a city forum to convince the public, because politicians do not decide against the public.“… There is a proposal to come together and make bigger ideas. Investors, city, architects all together. But the city architects moved themselves out of the process. The city develops smaller parts in smaller portions. So the bigger idea is still missing.” Kurg too finds the city is acting very strangely, in some respects saying and doing things that supporting the architect’s unions’ vision but then deciding something that doesn’t go along with this. A problem in achieving a larger view for the Urban Department in Tallinn is the law that everybody can do on his ground what he wants, so long as it doesn’t infringe on the neighbouring property. Defining and articulating any sort of infringement is very difficult. “… we always have to negotiate to bring projects together on a bigger scale. But at confrontations in front of court privates mostly won. Nowadays the attitude is changing and the city wins more and more cases in court.” (Kerttu Martin) Masterplans exist for the city and a special one for the shoreline. Now private investors have to develop according to these plans, unless they have a really good idea to change that.

Alvers notes that “there is a masterplan of the city but the masterplan is more the present situation. It is not so flexible. There should be an institution that is always up-dating the plan, but the city planners have no real power to do that.” The reason for this, Kurg notes, is “… most of the regulations are very weak because they have this policy of not intervening into the investors actions, and they try to be as attractive to investors as possible. And so especially in the 90s it created this very specific fragmentary way of development in the physical that every piece developed on its own, one piece and then the other, and no connections between except for car roads.

So every thing is seen by this kind of transportation by car, and even the new areas, like the Rotermann area, it’s still kind of on it’s own. There is no connection between the old city and that. […] a lot of people at the municipality architectural department are road engineers and they are really happy to build lots of roads, the wider, and the several levels and so on, they really love this stuff. This is a very pragmatic idea of what the city is.” According to Antii Viren (Metropolitan Council of Helsinki) effective metropolitan or regional governance does not exist even for Helsinki. All the cities of Helsinki’s metropolitan area have their own power. Helsinki, Espro and Vanta are always competing, making any regional cooperation difficult. From this background an integrated urban development resulting of collaboration of both cities

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seems unlikely, in spite of Twin City Project initiatives such as STRATEG which is intended to survey and compare planning documents from both sides.

So far in the case of urban development, municipal cooperation between Tallinn and Helsinki doesn’t officially exist. Even the impacts of Tallinns specific relation to Helsinki are not an issue for the planning process. Although in Tallinn more and more services are directed to the Finnish tourists (hairdressers, business, harbour commercial areas, etc.) that plays no role in the active planning process, according to the Urban Department of Tallinn. Instead,“… that comes from special business like in alcohol, dentists, big malls who plan with the Finnish.”

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kolleg9

eu urbanism ii

border cities

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