Parks and forests
The city is responsible for managing the green spaces, parks and forests it owns. These areas are used to maintain plantings, structures, furniture and other equipment. The aim is to create an urban environment that is pleasant, stimulating and value-oriented. The design will be guided by the guidelines set out in the zoning plan.
The current green space management classification, adopted in 2013, divides areas into three categories:
- The green areas in maintenance category 1 have been the football pitches of sports fields. The grass on the football pitches has been kept to a length of 3-3.5 cm and the areas otherwise kept tidy.
- Category 2 green areas have been parks and green areas on properties, where sand and other non-green material is removed in the spring and any damage is repaired. Grass is cut in green areas of maintenance category 2 when it is between 8 and 18 cm long. An effort will be made to maintain a smooth cut. The perimeter of obstacles and the edges of structures are levelled twice a year. The overall appearance of the green area will be kept tidy, within the limits of resources, until the snow comes, by raking leaves and debris in the autumn.
- The green areas in management category 3 have been landscape fields, cut with a mower. Landscape fields are areas that are not located in the centre of residential areas but on the periphery.
The harvesting and management plans for the forests owned by the City are prepared in accordance with the approved forest plan. The management of the forests will take into account the expansion of the city and the recreational and natural values of the forests.