Sunila residents value affordable homes and a strong community

Sunila in Kotka, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List as an example of Alvar Aalto’s architecture, is home to more than just Aalto enthusiasts, Yle reports. The news organisation visited four homes in the area.

Irja Burakoff and nearly half a century of neighbours

There is no one in sight in the courtyard of an apartment building in Sunila. Only tall pine trees sway gently. An elderly man watches visitors from the balcony of a building opposite.

Irja Burakoff, 76, opens the door of her top-floor apartment. She has lived in the same home for 49 years.

Burakoff remembers a time when Sunila had everything: schools, a bank, three grocery stores, greengrocers, a pharmacy and a dentist.

“Now there is nothing. Nothing at all,” she says.

Despite the loss of almost all local services, Burakoff says the sense of community has remained.

“When I look out of the window, I see all the people I know.”

One neighbour collects blueberries for her, another keeps a spare key, and the residents of her staircase meet up together.

Burakoff’s husband, Pekka, lived almost his entire life in Sunila, in the same apartment building. As a child, he lived in staircase C. In 1977, he moved to staircase A with his wife and children.

Burakoff does not want to move elsewhere. Sunila is home.

Mia Halonen’s writing room

Spacious rooms, thick walls and light that travels unobstructed through the apartment. Green treetops can be seen from the windows, while freshly brewed coffee fills the kitchen with its aroma.

This is the new home of journalist and presenter Mia Halonen, 61.

The Sunila apartment is Halonen’s second home. Her primary home is a rented apartment in Helsinki, where her elderly mother also lives.

Halonen searched for an apartment in Sunila for years. She hurried to buy one after hearing that the area had been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage status.

“I thought I had to get moving so I could buy an apartment before the decision was made.”

Her timing paid off. She bought the apartment in July, just before Sunila became a World Heritage Site.

Halonen has painted the entrance hall dark green and the living room in a shade named after a cinnamon bun. The plastic flooring in the entrance hall will be replaced with vinyl flooring.

In recent years, people have moved to Sunila, designed by Alvar and Aino Aalto, because of the affordable homes. Others are drawn by the world-famous designers.

Both factors influenced Halonen’s decision to buy.

She first heard about Sunila from journalist colleague Josper Knutaks around 20 years ago. At the time, she wondered how apartments designed by Aalto could be so affordable.

Her enthusiasm for Sunila began six years ago after she saw a Yle article about Jani Kylmänen’s apartment.

“Wow, that is really cool, I thought. After that, I started coming here regularly.”

Halonen says the best things about the apartment are its light and spaciousness, the park-like surroundings, the nearby sea and the sense of community.

The final factor in her decision was the alcove connected to the living room.

“It will become my writing room.”

Halonen does not disclose the exact price of her apartment. The asking prices for two-room apartments currently on the market range from 20,000 to 60,000 euros.

She believes interest from tourists will increase and that apartment values may rise now that Sunila has become a World Heritage Site.

“I still do not think of the home as an investment. A home is a home.”

Safety and peace for Samu Haatainen

Metal musician Samu Haatainen, 37, is not an Aalto fan. He is not involved in the Pro Sunila association, does not take part in community work and does not identify himself as a Sunila resident.

“For me, this is a beautiful residential area and a nice rented home,” he says.

Haatainen has moved frequently as an adult, but he has lived in Sunila longer than anywhere else. He has lived there with his children for six years.

He says the children enjoy living in the area and have familiar people around them. Safety and peace are also important to him.