SRV and Senate Properties have signed an agreement for the construction of the Oulu Main Police Station and Oulu Prison. This project will be implemented under a spearhead alliance project model and is valued at about EUR 119 million. The general planning of the project will be completed in the spring. The construction preparation phase will be started immediately. It is intended that if the Government makes a positive financing decision in April, the final investment decision will be made in April-May 2022, at which time the project will be transferred into SRV’s order backlog.

“We are excited to collaborate with Senate Properties again. In this project, we will also be able to take advantage of our expertise in security-classified projects that we have implemented for Senate Properties in the past. Earlier, we have implemented the new Hämeenlinna Women’s Prison, the Joensuu Court and Police Building project, and the renovation of the Lappeenranta Police Department. This large-scale project will have a significant impact on local employment already in the construction stage,” says Juha Huhtanen, Regional Director, SRV Northern Finland.

A main police station, remand prison and one court hall are being planned for Ruskonselkä, Oulu. These functions have been located in separate places – having them all in a single location will yield substantial benefits in terms of operations, logistics and the use of space. The total area of the project will be approximately 32,000 square metres (gross).

The town plan modifications required to proceed with construction are scheduled to be completed in summer 2022. If lease financing for the project is secured in spring 2022, the construction of the Oulu Main Police Station can begin with earthworks and foundation work in August 2022. Work on the prison would begin about half a year later. The Oulu Main Police Station would be completed in December 2024 and the prison in 2025. This is a security-classified project.

“The aim is to build healthy and secure premises for the Oulu Police Department and Oulu Prison to support their operations in line with the concepts. The Police Department currently operates in five separate locations and the Oulu Prison is housed in a historical building, whose oldest section was inaugurated in 1885. The Police’s permit services will remain in the Oulu city centre when the new police building has been completed,” says Harri Karjula, head of Senate Properties’ development team for Northern Finland.

During the construction preparation phase, the parties will jointly find the final technical implementation solutions that will best serve the objectives set for the project. Special attention will be paid to implementing optimal low-carbon solutions in the building. SRV’s construction sites became emission-free as from the beginning of 2022 and Senate Properties has committed itself to the Zero Emission Sites green deal. The joint objective in this project is to reduce the energy consumption and environmental load of the building and ensure the adaptability of the premises. Attention will also be paid to indoor air quality, healthiness of building materials, serviceability and reparability of the building, and the development of waste management. 

Senate Properties is the client and developer of the project – the company is responsible for the construction, maintenance and development of the state’s properties and work environments. In its operations, Senate Properties complies with the state’s cost price-based lease system, in which rents are used to cover property investments, maintenance and other related costs.

The architectural firms Uki Arkkitehdit Oy and Lukkaroinen Arkkitehdit Oy are responsible for the main and architectural design of the project.