Assisting with the Permitting of the English School and Related Administrative Proceedings

Rakennus

Lieke acted as the legal counsel in matters related to the permitting of the English School currently under construction in Etelä-Haaga, as well as in related administrative court proceedings.

Lieke acted as the legal counsel for Kiinteistö Oy Eliel Saarisen tie 41-45 in the permitting and administrative court proceedings related to its English School project. Kiinteistö Oy Eliel Saarisen tie 41-45 is part of the City of Helsinki group.

The English School is a school of 900 pupils under construction in Etelä-Haaga, for which new premises were searched for a long time due to the poor condition of the old school building in Meilahti. However, the new location raised some controversy, e.g. as the project requires derogation under the Nature Conservation Act due to the flying squirrel. Since educational use of the plot did not fully correspond to the use for which it was intended in the city plan, the project required also a deviation permit.

The deviation permit and the building permits of the project were both appealed to the Helsinki Administrative Court on grounds relating to, among other things, nature conservation, the city landscape, and the possible impacts on traffic. In particular, the case raised the question when deviation from the use defined in the city plan can be implemented with the deviation permit under section 57 of the Building Act (former section 171 of the Land Use and Building Act), and on the other hand, what type of change requires a city plan amendment. The Helsinki Administrative Court found that the project had been appropriately prepared for and that the project met the legislative substance requirements for land use and construction. The deviation decision was further appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court, which did not, however, grant a leave to appeal.

Construction works of the project commenced in February 2025 after a relatively short delay, and the school, intended to operate from preschool through upper secondary level, is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2027. The school in expected to begin operating in its new premises at the beginning of the fall semester in 2027.

“Due to the permit process and subsequent appeal proceedings, our English School construction project has been challenging in terms of both schedule and costs. Throughout the process, Lieke has provided us with excellent and expert service regardless of the matter at hand, and with their help we have been able to minimize schedule delays and additional costs.”
– Mikko Syrjänen, CEO, Kiinteistö Oy Eliel Saarisen tie 41-45

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