Stockholm To Have Its Own Downtown Allas Sea Bath
Picture: OOPEAA
Stockholm is about to have its own Allas sea bath. Nordic Urban, the company operating the Allas sea bath at Helsinki’s Market Square, aspires to build a sea bath in Stockholm’s old town. Nordic Urban has been in dialogue with Stockholm’s leadership for two and a half years to find a suitable location, and now the company is applying for a planning reservation for the chosen plot.
The project was announced on June 2 together with Stockholm’s Mayor Anna König Jerlmyr and the group leaders from the four other parties in the City Board. The sea bath is planned at Munkbrohamnen on the western shore of the old town area and close to the Gamla Stan subway stop. Stockholm’s City Development Board will decide on reserving the area for the sea bath project on June 11. The city’s leadership and the five largest political parties support granting Nordic Urban with the planning reservation, and, thus, the entire sea bath initiative.
”The project Nordic Urban is planning opens a fantastic opportunity for Stockholm. We will not only enliven the Munkbrohamnen area, but also make it possible for Stockholmers to swim in a warm outdoor pool throughout the year. Thanks to the project’s central location and good transportation connections, it will be easy for everyone to visit the facility”, says Stockholm’s Mayor and Moderate Party group leader Anna König Jerlmyr.
Helsinki’s Allas sea bath, located on Katajanokka and a stone’s throw away from the Market Square, has been open to visitors since 2017 and it holds a permit from the City of Helsinki to continue operations until the end of 2030. The sea bath has become very popular: its grounds are annually visited by apporiximately 800 000 visitors.
Nordic Urban seeks to expand its sea bath network both in Finland and globally. In Finland, the cities of Oulu and Turku have already made decisions on having Allas facilities, and also the City of Espoo has granted Nordic Urban a planning reservation in Keilaniemi on June 1. Stockholm is set to be Nordic Urban’s first international sea bath project. The company is also undergoing negotiations about new facilties in Oslo and eight other cities outside of Finland.
”We want to make the Allas sea bath an export which will simultaneously brand Finland and the Finnish way of life internationally. Many large cities have been built by a water body, but their shores have not been designated for people-friendly uses. Sea baths help revitalize city centers and create new recreational offerings for both residents and visitors”, says Nordic Urban’s CEO Raoul Grünstein.
Allas sea bath facilities will be realized using wooden architecture. Their development is also grounded on principles of environmental sustainability. The pool water filtration uses a closed circulation system, mitigating all emissions to the surrounding water body. The project in Stockholm is exploring the possibility of applying a system where the pools would be kept warm by extracting heat from the lake using water heat pumps.
More information:
Raoul Grünstein
raoul.grunstein@nordicurban.fi
+358 40 546 5630
Follow the progress of Stockholm’s Allas sea bath project.