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Vantaa

Mayor

Ritva Viljanen

Biography

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Vantaa has a rich history that dates back to the Stone Age. Before Swedish colonisation of the area and after the so-called second crusade to Finland in the 13th century, the area was inhabited by Tavastians and Finns proper.

Prior to the name Vantaa being taken into use in 1974, the area was known as Helsingin Pitäjä. The earliest record of the area is as Helsinge in 1351 when king Magnus II of Sweden granted salmon fishing rights on the river Vantaa to the Estonian Padise monastery. The rapids of river Vantaa were known as Helsingfors, from which the current Swedish name of Helsinki derives. Early settlement in Vantaa was centered around the river, and from it the city's current coat of arms derived its imagery.

Since the 14th century, the road between Turku and Vyborg, King`s Road, has run through Vantaa. The road brought significant attention to the city, and its location on the salmon rich river led to a permanent population.

In 1862, the railway between Helsinki and Hameelinna was constructed, and one of its 7 stations was built in Tikkurila, on its intersection with King's Road. The Swedish architect Carl Albert Edelfelt designed a Renaissance styled station building, which is the oldest extant station building in Finland and (as of 1978) has been adapted into the Vantaa City Museum. The railway brought industry and induced population growth.

Helsingin Pitäjä gained municipality rights in 1865, after which it was named Helsingin maalaiskunta ("Rural Municipality of Helsinki").

In 1952, the new international airport of Helsinki opened in Vantaa for the 1952 Summer Olympics.

In 1972, the municipality was renamed Vantaa. In 1974, the town got full city rights as Vantaan kaupunki/Vanda stad or "City of Vantaa".

The city grew rapidly starting from 1960's and a railway line was built to the western side of the city in 1970's.

In 2015, an extension to the existing railway line, the Ring Rail Line opened, providing service to the airport and new residential and working districts.

Source: Wikipedia

Finland / Vantaa / Green City / Innovation and Research

Finnish air-fed protein could solve world hunger

The invention promises to be revolutionary as it can decouple food production from agriculture and its environmental impacts

Jun 27, 2022 15:50

Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov

Finland / Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Education and Sport

Helsinki Metropolitan Area offers residents 125 guided tours in nature

Excursions will be free of charge

Apr 26, 2022 14:36

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Innovation and Research

Vantaa Innovation Competition: Applications open on 14 April

The Finnish city will allocate EUR 300,000 for the realisation of the best ideas

Apr 13, 2022 11:53

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Espoo / Helsinki / Pirkkala / Tampere / Vantaa / Welfare and Health

Which are Finland’s most vibrant cities?

Ramboll conducted a study based on the 15-minute cities concept and its LIVCY index

Oct 04, 2021 17:01

Svilena Iotkovska

Belgium / Finland / Germany / Ireland / Lithuania / Netherlands / Portugal / Spain / Braga / Brussels / Dublin / Vantaa / Vilnius / Innovation and Research

European Capital of Innovation Awards 2021 semi-finalists announced

16 cities from 10 countries have made it to the semi-final stage

Sep 02, 2021 16:26

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Culture and Tourism

Vantaa invites residents to participate in a photography competition

The Vantaa Museum Photo Marathon will take place on 11 September as part of the European Heritage Days

Aug 26, 2021 17:04

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Digital transformation / Education and Sport

Vantaa modernises its early childhood education services

Intelligent automation will help pinpoint the best pre-schools and kindergartens for each child

Aug 10, 2021 13:08

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Development

Vantaa will revitalise its city centre with a modern building

The future establishment will offer retail space, cultural facilities, offices, and apartments

May 19, 2021 11:00

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Welfare and Health

Vantaa will invest 1 million euros to help unemployed youth

COVID-19 has doubled the number of young, unemployed people

Apr 12, 2021 13:28

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Vantaa / Development / Welfare and Health

The City of Vantaa to begin Child Friendly Cities work

As of this year, Vantaa will begin implementing UNICEF’s Child Friendly Cities model to guarantee the fulfillment of children’s rights.

Feb 23, 2021 11:23

Svilena Iotkovska

Finland / Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Culture and Tourism / Green City

Helsinki’s libraries ditch plastic book covers

Instead, bio coating will be used in Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen

Feb 12, 2021 16:10

Aseniya Dimitrova

Espoo / Helsinki / Tampere / Turku / Vantaa / Energy efficiency

Multicity project offers environmental solutions to Finland’s urban areas

A landmark initiative involving 6 cities has allowed them to find new ways to further combat climate change on their premises

Dec 27, 2020 15:09

Anton Stoyanov

Espoo / Helsinki / Tampere / Turku / Vantaa / Mobility

Finnish cities band together for massive railway projects

The plans for these projects were approved by the Finnish government earlier this year but work is now set to finally begin

Dec 09, 2020 11:48

Anton Stoyanov

Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Welfare and Health

Finnish cities launch campaign to encourage mask wearing

The campaign is specifically aimed at the country’s youth

Nov 19, 2020 10:43

Anton Stoyanov

Vantaa / Energy efficiency

Vantaa is committed to becoming a carbon neutral city by 2030

Mayor Ritva Viljanen focuses on the major goal of the upcoming EU programme period

Oct 22, 2020 10:59

Monika Dimitrova

Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Welfare and Health

Espoo to offer municipal employment trials with the cities of Helsinki and Vantaa

The social initiative will start in spring 2020

Nov 14, 2019 10:15

Monika Dimitrova

Vantaa / Welfare and Health

Vantaa Municipality offers free park lunch for children

This summertime good practice will cost around 25,000 euros

Jun 19, 2019 08:49

Monika Dimitrova

Espoo / Helsinki / Tampere / Vantaa / Development

Six Finnish Smart Cities work together

They are building a model for sustainable urban development

Apr 05, 2019 12:17

Monika Dimitrova

Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Mobility

Espoo and Helsinki have launched the shared-use bicycle season

Vantaa and Oulu launch in June

Apr 03, 2019 13:26

Monika Dimitrova

Espoo / Helsinki / Vantaa / Mobility

The first self-driving bus for all weather conditions will go through the streets of Espoo in April

It will begin operating in Hämeenlinna, Vantaa and Helsinki later in 2019

Mar 12, 2019 11:57

Monika Dimitrova

Vantaa / Mobility

The city of Vantaa is rolling out 1000 shared city bikes next year

Shared city bikes are increasing across Finland

Dec 14, 2018 14:26

Monika Dimitrova

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