Mikkelipuisto

Mikkelipuisto Park is an entity under construction right near the centre of Mikkeli, and the aim is to turn it into the leading centre for horticultural tourism in Eastern Finland. In the park join the area's varied nature, the recreation areas and the model gardens planned and built by companies. Together these will constitute a high-class visiting attraction for both amateurs, professionals, and tourists. The total area of the park that will develop on the lands of the town amounts to 42 hectares.

The location of Mikkelipuisto Park in the town structure is excellent. The distance between the most central model gardens area and the marketplace of Mikkeli is not more than 1,5 kilometers. A landscape architects' competition for planning the park was arranged in 2001, and the winner was Maisemasuunnittelu Hemgård. Further planning and developing has been made on the basis of the winner's work. The goal is to receive into the core of Mikkelipuisto Park, the so-called model gardens area, 77 permanent exhibition departments or model gardens. Besides the model gardens area, Mikkelipuisto Park will consist of public areas such as the Kaihunharju ridge, the varied shore areas and the fields of Kenkäveronniemi. The park will be built in phases during 2004-2010. The construction was begun in August 2004 with excavation work of the model garden departments. The building owner is the town of Mikkeli. To the finished centre will be expected 200 000 visitors a year.

The core of Mikkelipuisto Park consists of an about 6 hectares model gardens area. 1,6 hectares of this has been reserved for high-grade model gardens planned and constructed by companies. Mikkelipuisto Park offers companies a new way to present their products, know-how and ideas in natural surroundings. The average size of a single model garden is 100-300 m², but the participating company can choose the size of the department in accordance with its own needs and the limiting conditions the environment sets. In each model garden department there is one or more companies and each of them will sign an agreement with the association administrating the park. The single departments has been bordered with light wooden fences in the core area and with trimmed hedges elsewhere.

The departments are built to be permanent and have a sort of obligation to be renewed every few years. The departments cannot be pure product demonstration areas. Companies in the gardening industries can, however, build a model garden whose natural part their products are. The first company-driven model gardens are built year 2006.

The companies in the park can function in various industries connected with gardening and landscaping construction, such as garden and park furniture, play tools, landscaping constructions, landscaping, vegetation, concrete and natural stone products, and light fittings. Because the park is not a presentation place for products in the first place, the companies that are going to build their own model garden into the park can function in other industries, too, and do valuable imago marketing in Mikkelipuisto Park. Such companies could, for example, be banks, industrial plants, and various communities.

Building of a garden department creates a permanent fixed point, easy to execute, in the Mikkeli region even for companies mainly functioning elsewhere. The maintenance of the model gardens and the information transmission to visitors alike has been arranged centralized, so that single companies need not employ staff for their departments. Already in early phase, companies from highly various industries have come along from park furniture to textile industry and from wood industry to bee products.

The companies have opportunity to present their know-how, products and ideas even outside the actual model gardens area. Examples of this are the area's lighting and park furniture, the wooden shore constructions planned along the routes, and the Finland's longest stone paving exhibition with natural stone and concrete products between the rails of the former industrial railway line crossing the park.

... to present products and know-how in a new stimulating, innovative and high-quality way, and do valuable imago marketing

the goal is to get 200 000 visitors a year
target groups are, among other things, the garden and nature enthusiasts and the professionals in the industry both from Finland and abroad
visitors have free entry to the park

... to create an excellent presentation place and a fixed point at the centre of the Finnish Lakeland, by good communications

close to the popular Kenkävero tourist attraction and the centre of Mikkeli
in a traffic-knot of the highways nr 5 and 13/15
in South Savo in the middle of the lively cottage and holiday region

joint marketing and information, and a new-type of company network with the contribution of Mikkelipuistoyhdistys ry stimulate marketing and contact making
high quality level and well-known designers probably awaken also the media's interest towards the area

High quality is required from the participating companies. The more precise selection criteria and the limiting conditions of landscape building will be drawn up by Mikkelipuistoyhdistys ry together with head designer Gretel Hemgård.

The values of Mikkelipuisto Park are customer concentration, innovative operations, internationality, aesthetic character, commercial action, local colour, high quality, ecological nature, and reliability. The company must, in general outline, fit in the values to be able to participate in Mikkelipuisto Park.

Before the construction work starts, a plan for each department has to be presented to Mikkelipuistoyhdistys ry. The construction can be started only on the basis of an approved plan.

Mikkelipuistoyhdistys ry, an association founded on April 20, 2005 is responsible for the operations of the model gardens area. The association members are the town of Mikkeli that owns the land, ProAgria South Savo and Finnish Lakeland Garden Information Centre that together answer for the development projects, and all participating companies. The association can also be joined by societies that want to contribute to developing the association's action even though they do not build a model garden. An example of society members is Viherympäristöliitto, the Finnish Association of Landscape Industries.

The companies in Mikkelipuisto Park will pay rental per square metre for their departments. The charge includes membership in the association and services provided by it. The association will also take care of the park's marketing work presenting the participating companies in many ways, and answers for the centralized maintenance of both the model gardens area and the single model gardens.

The rental for the model gardens area consists of the basic and service charges.

15,75 €/m²/year (+ VAT 23 %)
Includes association membership, marketing services, visitors information, etc.

10,50 €/m²/year (+ VAT 23 %)
Consists of various vegetation maintenance works from lawn mowing to plant fertilization.
Will be charged only the departments having vegetation to be maintained.

For example, the yearly charge for a model garden department of 100 m² is 2625€ + VAT. The minimum charge to the participating companies is 525 €/year (+ VAT 23 %)

Entrepreneurs are also wanted to the info pavilion to be built in the model gardens area, and to the business area in the southern part of the park. The magnificent info pavilion will in future provide the basic services to park visitors. The pavilion will include a café-restaurant with a shop area. To the business area close to the model gardens will be searched for complementary high-quality all-year-round enterprise activities.