Davidsson Tarkela Siren Architects
Client
City of Helsinki
Description
Renovation and extension
Size br-m2
~35 000
Year
1999–2020

Torikorttelit

The Torikorttelit project covers four of the oldest blocks in the heart of Helsinki.

Senate Square is the monumental centre of Helsinki and the major architectural focal point in the town plan by Johan Albrecht Ehrenström and Carl Ludvig Engel from the beginning of the 19th century. The city blocks  between Senate Square and Market Square were taken over after World War II by city administrative functions, causing the area to lose some of its charm. In early 2010, the City of Helsinki launched a revitalization project for the entire area. The planning of Torikorttelit included four blocks in the Empire style area of central Helsinki: the Elephant, Lion, Rhino and Dromedary blocks. 

The Elephant block and its three internal courtyards have been opened to the public. The new premises of the Helsinki City Museum are located on the west side of the Elephant Quarter, and the museum is now a continuation of a lively public urban space with courtyards and restaurants, galleries, and other tourist attractions. The project joins the common interests of the city and Torikorttelit by expanding commercial premises, while also fulfilling the museum’s need to develop its public services and content in experiential exhibition spaces that meet the requirements for modern museum operations. 
Project Scope

The Elephant block – Helsinki City Museum and Govinius House

The project included the renovation of Sederholm House (1757), the oldest remaining building in Helsinki, the adjoining building on Katarinegatan 3 (1761), Remander House (1814–1873), Falkman House (1829–1872) and the White Hall (1925).

The Lion block – Helsinki City Hall and the Hellenius, Burtz and Bockhus business premises

The complex that houses Helsinki City Hall includes the former Society House from the 19th century, designed by C.L. Engel. The building was converted into a town hall in the 1960s according to Aarno Ruusuvuori’s drawings. The town hall complex also contains parts of old 19th century trading houses and Ruusuvuori’s 1980s council hall. In the City Hall renovation, we also realized revitalization goals for the neighborhood by opening the ground floor of City Hall and the staff restaurant to the public.

The Rhino block – Bryggeri and Brofeldt House

The old archive premises in the middle of the block were transformed into a new brewery restaurant with fermentation tanks and copper wort pans visible behind the courtyard’s new glass structures. The beautiful old bank hall in the Brofeldt House has been converted to a restaurant.
The Dromedary block – the Wuorio building, the K32 office building and Kluuvin Galleria

Jugend Hall together with the ground floor of the office building at the corner of Pohjoisesplanandi and Unioninkatu were converted into premises for a tourist office, exhibition space and a cafe. The spaces of Kluuvin Galleria on the fourth floor were converted into activity-based offices for the city.

Wuorio’s Art Deco business house (Hermann Gesellius 1908) was renovated and expanded with an inner wing, and the ground floor was converted into open business premises.