Rovaniemi mayor steps down after six years without an office

Rovaniemi’s outgoing mayor Ulla-Kirsikka Vainio, who led the city for six years without a dedicated office, will leave her post on 31 May, Finnish broadcaster Yle reports.

Vainio worked from a modest meeting room in a repurposed school building, a space shared by other staff when not in use. “This works well and makes efficient use of space,” she said. “It saves taxpayer money.” The city’s Alvar Aalto–designed town hall, which includes a mayoral office, has been under renovation since 2019 and will reopen next year. Vainio, a trained architect, said she had no plans to move in. “I can say I helped fix it,” she remarked.

Her tenure began in May 2020 amid a record flood that submerged parts of the city. Within weeks, she uncovered major losses in the city’s investment portfolio, prompting a swift withdrawal of funds. The ensuing “investment scandal” led to years of investigations, including a police probe into Vainio and three city council members. No charges were filed. “Addressing these issues was in line with democratic governance,” she said, noting Rovaniemi’s small size—66,000 residents—made such matters deeply personal.

The pandemic soon added to the strain, with shifting restrictions, school closures, and the need to organise mass testing and vaccinations. “The days were long and gruelling,” Vainio recalled. “What was allowed one day was banned the next.”

Under her leadership, Rovaniemi’s tourism boomed, with annual overnight stays reaching 1.5 million—third-highest in Finland after Helsinki and Tampere. Vainio attributed the growth not to luck but to decades of work by the city and local businesses. “It’s been a massive effort,” she said.

The tourism surge has also fuelled criticism that development prioritises visitors over residents, exacerbating housing shortages and rising rents as short-term rentals dominate the centre. Vainio acknowledged the tension but pointed to upcoming legal changes that may give housing cooperatives more control over rental restrictions.

Financially, the city turned around a €45 million deficit from the three years before her arrival, accumulating a €70 million surplus during her term. However, per-capita debt rose from €5,068 in 2019 to €6,246 last year. Vainio highlighted major projects like new schools and the €30 million town hall renovation as signs of fiscal health.

A lifelong Rovaniemi resident, she recalled the 1980s, when hearing Swedish in shops was rare and German tourists a summer novelty. “Now the city is truly international,” she said.