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Last week, an introduction and public discussion of the design of the spatial parts of the Putukaväil’s Mustjõe-Hiiu “Straightly nature-rich” took place in the environmental education center of Tallinn Zoo.

The attendees feedback mainly asked to pay special attention to nature conservation in Astangu, one of Tallinn’s most biodiverse areas, to take care of the safety of people and cyclists with different speeds in light traffic, and to see that it is also safe to cross the large streets crossing Putukaväil, such as Ehitajate road.

The landscape architectural design “Strongly rich in nature” (authors AB Artes Terrae OÜ, Sulev Nurme, Mirjam Tasa, Merle Karro-Kalberg) has been drawn up for five spatial sections of Putukaväil: Mustjõe, Veskimetsa, Väike-Õismäe, Astangu and Vana-Mustamäe-Hiiu.

Vladimir Svet, the deputy mayor who introduced the event, said that the authors of the design are well known to Tallinn already: they designed the vision based on which Tondiraba Park on Lasnamäe was also completed. “There was already the task of using the existing nature, valuing it and preserving it, so that man could coexist with nature. It’s good that people with such experiences are now doing the Putukaväil,” said Svet.

“Putukaväil is one of the largest and most unique parks that we create in Tallinn. My big request to everyone here is to stick with this project. Putukaväil is a big thing, and it is important that the locals feel like the owners of this big park, green space,” Svet told the audience.
The overall project of Putukaväil was introduced by Anna Semjonova, spatial design expert of the Tallinn Strategic Management Office, who emphasized that the guiding principle of the green area to be created, as well as the starting point given to the authors of the designs, is the preservation and expansion of the area’s natural biodiversity, while also offering environmentally friendly ways of mobility for people.

The Mustjõu-Hiiu section is the longest, 8.6-kilometer and very different section of the 13-kilometer-long Putukaväil: it passes through the suburbs, the industrial landscape, the area of apartment buildings and Tallinn’s most biodiverse areas.

Merle Karro-Kalberg, one of the authors of the design, pointed out that their experience with Tondiraba Park also inspired the development of the idea for Putukaväil. “Urban nature and its interpretation are close to our hearts, on Putukaväil, which is a former railway embankment that nature has taken over and shaped to its own liking, it can be done in a different way than in a normal city park,” he said.

The main idea is to support biodiversity in the design and bring it to those sections where there is less of it at the moment. For example, interventions are planned in low biodiversity sections so that plants, insects, birds, small animals feel better: planting local plants in beds suitable for pollinators, a separate bed for birds with plants with seeds and berries that smaller birds would like to eat, etc.

Karro-Kalberg emphasized that they tried to interfere with the existing nature as little as possible, but at the same time to open the areas around the Putukaväil light traffic roads to people, which are not easily accessible at the moment. “As many as there are people, there are desires. 8.6 kilometers is long enough that we can create opportunities for all wishes,” said Karro-Kalberg.

For example, the planned light traffic road also has a green strip to separate road users at different speeds, i.e. pedestrians and cyclists. The plan is to create not classic playgrounds for children, but areas with more abstract elements, where they can invent the game themselves. In the design, there are also various small forms such as viewing platforms, shades, observation tower, willow tunnels, etc., so that people have the opportunity to go out into nature and experience it more authentically.

The design of Mustjõe-Hiiu can be found on the website of Putukaväil www.putukavail.ee and ideas and suggestions about it can be submitted to the address putukavail@tallinnlv.ee.