Asetelmankatu 1 & 3

Asetelmankatu 1 is a rental apartment building owned by the City of Helsinki Housing Company, while Asetelmankatu 3 is a right-of-occupancy apartment building owned by the Helsinki Housing Authority. Together, these 3–5-story buildings comprise a total of 99 apartments.

The wooden apartment buildings on Asetelmankatu are situated on the southern edge of Kuninkaantammi, bordering Kuninkaantammenkierto. The surrounding area, largely developed in the 2010s and 2020s, consists of new construction. To the west, the block adjoins Helene Schjerfbeck Park, while Asetelmankatu runs along its east side.

The block itself features four elongated lamella buildings that enclose a sheltered central courtyard. On the north side, the buildings are grouped around four stairwells. The south side of the block contains two lower buildings with loft corridors and three stairwells.

The block features a consistent gable roof, as mandated by the local plan. The street-facing facade is designed to feel active and playful, achieved through a meandering gable roof with a ridge line set transversely to the street and varying roof angles. The attic space created by this design cleverly houses the building’s HVAC equipment rooms.

In line with the local plan’s objectives, the facades are colorful. The street-side facades are further enlivened by recessed stairwells and individual balconies, highlighted with accent colors. In contrast, the other facades maintain a calm aesthetic, thanks to the straight lines formed by windows, balcony doors, and eaves. The building masses are segmented into smaller sections by varying the roof angle, ridge line placement, and exterior cladding tones.

The lower height of the southern buildings allows ample sunlight to reach both the block courtyard and all apartments on the north side. Top-floor apartments in the northern buildings also offer views over the rooftops to Helene Schjerfbeck Park.

The block boasts a diverse range of apartments, from spacious five-bedroom homes to studios. The southern buildings include unique two-story, three- and five-room apartments. Every apartment features a spacious glazed balcony or terrace, strategically placed on the south sides of the buildings to optimize for wind. The roofs of these balcony zones echo the gable roof theme found throughout the rest of the building.

For residents, club rooms are conveniently located at street level, with direct access from either the courtyard or stairwells. The house saunas are situated at the courtyard deck level in the southern building, and even include their own spacious balconies. Parking is provided in two garages beneath the courtyard, accessible directly from Asetelmankatu on the south side of the block, with direct links to the stairwells.

Technical solutions

The surrounding streets’ elevation drops by one floor from north to south. Because of this, the northern buildings’ basements, the deck and its underlying parking, and the southern buildings’ lowest floor are all constructed entirely from concrete.

Above the lowest floor, the facades are constructed from large prefabricated wooden elements, and the load-bearing partitions are made of prefabricated frame elements. Non-load-bearing partitions are frame-structured panel walls. The apartment’s intermediate floors are prefabricated wooden element slabs, while stairwell intermediate floors use LVL boards. The stairs are crafted from CLT with granite treads.

CLT and LVL products were also utilized in elevator shafts, balconies, balcony lintels, and other demanding structures. The roof elements and structures are also made of wood.

Special attention was paid to the energy efficiency of the buildings, as outlined in both the site plan and client objectives. This is reflected in the better-than-usual thermal insulation values of the outer shell construction, windows, and doors. The buildings feature centralized ventilation, with each having its own ventilation machine room. Heating is provided by district heating with water-circulating radiator heating. Solar panels on the roofs generate electricity for the property.

Both the residential buildings and parking garages are equipped with an automatic high-pressure water mist extinguishing system. Additionally, the ground floor facades have been treated with a fire retardant.

Construction project

In late 2019, the City of Helsinki Housing Development launched an SR quality competition for wooden apartment buildings in Kuninkaantammi block 33400. One of the block’s two plots was designated for right-of-occupancy apartments, and the other for rental apartments. The proposal from the design team, assembled and led by SR contractor Arkta Reponen, was selected as the winner in early 2020.

The site’s design then progressed, with building permits submitted in January 2021. Once the permit became legally binding in August 2021, earthworks on the plot began in late 2021. The installation of concrete elements for the ground floor started in early 2022.

The installation of the wooden frames, which commenced in the summer of 2022, was carried out entirely under weather protection. This protective structure was systematically moved after each building’s installation work to safeguard subsequent installations. This approach ensured high construction quality and maintained a dry chain throughout the building process. The entire project was completed in the spring of 2024, allowing residents to move into their new homes.