Creative Hiedanranta Project

Culture-driven urban development

Hiedanranta is a historical factory area in western Tampere, that is transforming into a modern and sustainable city district. The aim is to create homes for 25,000 residents and jobs for 10,000 employees. The land areas and buildings are owned by Hiedanrannan Kehitys Oy, who ambitiously works for the development of the area and the renovation of factory premises.

The attraction factor of the new city district is the valuable built cultural environment consisting of an old industrial property, a historic manor, a lakeside landscape, and beautiful parks. The aim is to develop a hub of events, culture services and creative businesses in the area. Communality and equality are emphasized in the planning as part of sustainable urban construction.

The Creative Hiedanranta project implements culture-driven urban development. The development of cultural facilities is based on the history and nature of the factory area, the preservation of the built cultural environment, the needs of cultural operators and the public, as well as the creativity, innovation and participation that characterise the entire district. Cultural values are thus seen as a significant identity factor in the development.

Part of wider development

Tampere's needs for cultural spaces have been extensively mapped in the preparation of the cultural service network. According to the report, the lack of premises hampers the development of performing arts activities and the expansion of the audience base in particular. Hiedanranta's cultural spaces would provide a solution to spatial challenges and at the same time support many of the city's own and wider regional goals.

Enabling workspaces for cultural professionals and entrepreneurs has been included in the Tampere Mayor's Programme and the Tampere Experience Economy Development Programme. The planning of the practices and financing of events and cultural spaces has been included in the Hiedanranta development programme.

The facility project supports the strategic goals of the City of Tampere, according to which Tampere is known as a hub of international-level events and culture. The project aligns also with the goals of regional programme for Pirkanmaa by improving the operating conditions for culture, access to art and culture, and the preservation of cultural heritage.

Concept design is underway

The Hiedanranta creative economy centre is planned for factory buildings and a manor with a total area of approximately 30,000 m². The cultural spaces will be part of a larger entity formed using a private-public model, combining publicly funded culture and market-based creative services.

The operating concept of the factory area is based on combining public and private cultural activities so that the whole becomes a functional ecosystem that benefits all parties. Centralisation benefits both the public and service providers. For the public, the centre offers exceptionally diverse cultural services under the same roof. For operators in the creative sector, the ecosystem offers an opportunity to develop the contents and businesses, as well as the audience base and co-productions.

Based on sustainable thinking, the cultural space concept also emphasises the principle of radical sharing. Concentrating several different operators in the same property enables the sharing of resources, i.e. shared facilities, technology and know-how, in a way that brings savings and efficiency to operations.

In the early stages, the planning of the cultural space concept will focus on the performing arts, the city's larger cultural aid communities and the city's own cultural activities. The planning started with a space needs survey already in 2021. The needs assessment and opportunities for cooperation have been deepened in the project's workshops during spring 2023. Decisions on the further preparation of the concept will be made by the end of 2023. The actual spatial planning and related decision-making will take place in the next few years.

The schedule of the construction of the Hiedanranta factory area is affected by the completion of the detailed planning of the area and the granting of special permits. The schedule for the realisation of cultural facilities is affected by the city's decision-making related to the service network. According to preliminary timing, the phased implementation of the factory would begin approximately in 2027, and the cultural facilities could be taken into use latest at the turn of the decade.

The results can also be used in other municipalities

The results of the Creative Hiedanranta project include a space concept, partnerships between key players in the area, a financing model and development network, and an EU funding application for further development. The results are open to the whole region. They can provide a learning and co-creation model for the development of cultural activities and spaces in other municipalities of Pirkanmaa.

In the future, Hiedanranta can also act as an international level reference and pilot destination in the development of creative industries.