Helsinki’s iconic Suvilahti DIY skatepark to be demolished by autumn

The self-built Suvilahti DIY skatepark, a landmark of Helsinki’s grassroots urban culture, will be dismantled by the end of September after the city terminated the lease agreement for the site, Finnish public broadcaster Yle reports.

The decision comes as construction work on Kaasutehtaankatu and Kaasutehtaankenttä is set to begin this autumn. While the city has designated a temporary replacement site roughly 200 metres away—near Hanasaari power plant and the Sompasaarenalta water area—skaters argue the new location cannot replicate the spirit of the original.

“This isn’t Suvilahti DIY 2.0”
Sakari Leskinen, chair of the Helride Collective skate organisation, acknowledged the city’s effort to provide an alternative but stressed the fundamental difference: the new site will be a city-funded facility, not a self-governed space.

“Of course, it’s great that any alternative exists—many similar projects worldwide get nothing,” Leskinen told Yle. “But this won’t be another Suvilahti DIY. It’s a municipal activity space, and that changes everything.”

The original park, built and maintained by skaters over 15 years, became a global hub for the sport, hosting events like the Helride competition and visits from legends like Tony Hawk. Its “do-it-yourself” ethos—embodied in its name—fostered not just skating but skills in concrete construction and event organising.

Criticism of Helsinki’s cultural policy
Anssi Paukkunen, a founder of Suvilahti DIY and now executive director of Helride Collective, framed the demolition as part of a broader pattern in Helsinki. He pointed to the closure of beloved music venues like Lepakko and Nosturi, operated by the Live Music Association Elmu, which still lacks a permanent replacement.

“Living urban culture is being destroyed by turning vibrant, self-organised spaces into passive, dull ones,” Paukkunen said. “The city has unfortunately excelled at this in recent years.”

City officials, however, note that the park’s temporary status was always clear. Tuomas Hakala, project manager for Helsinki’s urban development unit, compared the situation to Sompasauna, another grassroots Kalasatama venue that relocated last summer. Both projects operated on land earmarked for redevelopment.

While Hakala acknowledged concerns about the new site’s character, he emphasised the city’s constraints: “We can’t maintain a facility whose background and operations we don’t fully oversee. Our responsibility is to deliver the new space—and we’ll do so in cooperation with skaters.”

The replacement park will also be temporary, as the area remains subject to future development plans.