Lahti centre has vacancies, but businesses keep arriving
Friday 18th September 2026 on 17:15 in
Finland
About 10 per cent of commercial premises in central Lahti are vacant, but Lahti City ry executive director Pipsa Wirtanen says the figures do not indicate that the city centre is dying, Yle reports.
Slightly more than half of the vacant premises have been empty for more than a year. There are more than 800 commercial premises in the centre, the fourth-highest total among Finnish cities after Helsinki, Tampere and Turku.
“We have a very large ground-level commercial centre,” Wirtanen said. She added that the number of vacant premises partly reflects the unusually large amount of retail space in central Lahti and gives new entrepreneurs more choice.
Vacant premises became a topic of discussion after Lahti Market Hall closed on Tuesday because of bankruptcy. Some other premises have also been waiting for new businesses for years. One former restaurant space on Aleksanterinkatu has been empty for almost six years.
Despite the vacancies, the situation is constantly changing. Wirtanen said about 130 changes take place among the centre’s commercial premises each year, with businesses moving in as others leave. During Yle’s visit, new premises were being renovated on Rautatienkatu for a pharmacy.
Bus changes have shifted customer flows
Wirtanen said the commercial focus of central Lahti has been moving from the market square towards the Trio shopping centre.
Businesses around the market square have attributed falling turnover to the global economy, tighter household finances and recent changes to Lahti’s bus services, which may have shifted customer flows elsewhere.
Some bus routes were moved from the area around the market square to the front of the Trio shopping centre. Changes to bus fares may also have affected people’s behaviour.
This year, passengers travelling with walking frames or children’s pushchairs also began paying on buses operated by LSL. Wirtanen suspects the change has particularly reduced mobility among older people. She said local entrepreneurs had shared assessments supporting that view.
Wirtanen’s answer to the question of what is wrong in the city centre was that “nothing” is wrong. In her role at Lahti City, she works to promote a positive image of the centre and support the development of businesses in the area.