Unique solutions – Arcada UAS builds student accommodation with a highly equipped sports hall in Arabianranta
Published: 02.08.2017 / Campus / Press release
In August Arcada University of Applied Sciences will start building new student housing facilities with its own sports hall in Hermannin rantatie in Helsinki. The combination of student apartments and sports facilities makes this a one-of-a-kind building in Helsinki. The building is estimated to be finished and available for tenants in January 2019.
The building will be a modern eight-floor-high apartment building, which will hold up till 103 student apartments between floors 1 to 5, as well as being equipped with a high-end sports hall with a gym and fitness test lab on floors 6 to 8.
“At Arcada our ambition is to profile ourselves within the sports education in Finland. The sports hall will provide the students with proper facilities for their education, and the modern fitness test lab will support our research within sports, movement and exercise,” says Henrik Wolff, Rector and CEO of the Arcada Foundation.
A growing campus which also serves the community
The three-floor-high sports hall will be the size of a basketball court and come equipped with new sports equipment for versatile functionality and use. The gym and the test lab will also offer new and state-of-the-art equipment. The acquisitions will be co-ordinated in co-operation with the degree programmes in sports and physiotherapy. The gym and sports hall will also be made available for the public in the area, when the facilities are not used for educational purposes.
“During evenings and weekends the facilities will be available to rent by external users and organizations. Private individuals will also be given the opportunity to purchase a gym card,” Wolff says as he emphasizes the importance of maintaining the growing campus’s connection to the external community.
Current living trends and students’ wishes are prioritized
Building a sports hall on top of an apartment building is a unique and technically challenging endeavour.
“We are actually building two houses on top of each other – first an apartments building, and on top of that a sports hall, which will be placed upon a vast amount of springs,” says Jörgen Wiik, CEO for the Arcada Foundation’s property company Arcada Nova.
The apartments are divided into 85 studio apartments, 14 two-bedroom apartments and 4 three-bedroom apartments.
“It’s been important for us to listen to the students’ requests and wishes, and it became clear that most prefer to live by themselves, or with a friend or partner. Which is why the apartments range from 21 to 56 square meters in size,” Wiik says.
With the completion of Fastighets Ab Majsporten, Arcada will be able to offer a total of 610 modern student apartments within the campus area of Arabianranta.
“We are very proud to be able to offer high-quality and modern housing close to the UAS. A centralized “green campus”, where student easily can access all the services they need, is a top priority for us,” says Wiik.
The architect of Fastighets Ab Majsporten and Fastighets Ab Arcadahallen is Stefan Ahlman. Haahtela Oy takes on the role as construction consultant. The budget for the project is estimated to 19 million euros.
Additional information:
Henrik Wolff, Rector Arcada UAS and CEO of the Arcada Foundation, +358 50 64936, E-mail: henrik.wolff
Jörgen Wiik, CEO for the Arcada Foundation’s property company Arcada Nova, +358 50 406 7818, E-mail: jorgen.wiik
