The city council approved the start of construction planning for a new sports center

Smart decisions, all other sports at Karhumäki too! Now just get down to business and start building. That old sacrificial building is already at the end of its useful life. Buses run through the whole city just fine. If only you could get that swimming pool in the same area!

Fortunately - the swimming pool will not be given up, or if it is, it is a serious place for development and the community will be lost!

Where are you getting the funding from? I am not prepared to pay more for decisions that are against the interests of the taxpayers of Imatra!

Excellent decision. The fact that people are appealing to the proximity of the school is nonsense. The school does not use the facilities even now, but they use their own facilities built for the school. The swimming pool is a separate issue in terms of the use of the facilities.

In addition, the majority of enthusiasts are already in Ukonniemi. Building a sports center there will create great synergy benefits between different sports.

Where in Imatra would there be a place that would be close to everyone is very challenging, because the urban structure is already spread out. How close is the current sports center to the residents of Vuoksenniska, for example? What about Meltola, etc. It is difficult to think of a place that would be close to everyone.

Ukonniemi is also a much better place to build than the clay riverbank. On a gravel ridge, but on dry terrain, the building may remain healthy in the future.

It's great that we're making sensible decisions!

Are we now sure that we are equal between different sports?
In Imatra, indoor sports are now defined as baseball, football, running, long jump, a large part of other athletics, padel, badminton, basketball, volleyball, swimming, ice hockey, etc. Is skiing the only one that is discriminatory and does not get its own indoor performance space?? And does it not deserve changing rooms or even toilets?
So you can afford to spend 18 million on a new hall for sports that have been popular in previous decades, but no toilets for skiers?
So a total of over 35 million by 2050 and some even dare to complain about the cost of outdoor snow stored for skiers!!
The new sports hall and swimming pool will bring exactly zero euros in additional income to Imatra. The ski hall would bring even more demand for accommodation and a diverse income stream from outside Imatra for businesses and the city. That is, in addition to the income stream brought by the current first snow track.
No new "multipurpose hall" on the same old discriminatory grounds, thank you. It's like throwing money down the drain.

The ideal location is naturally close to the school, i.e. the current location. The current sports hall will be repaired this year and will probably be maintained at low cost for the next 5-10 years. Between the Ukonniemi ice rink and the bubble hall, there would be a natural place for a ski hall instead of the current snow storage area. Another option is to build a ski hall/ice hall on the other side of the road instead of the former camping area. On that side, you could easily get a long hall with a long ice rink in the middle for touring skating (really for city dwellers, not just ice hockey players) and international tire testing instead of Lapland (with electric cars). A ski track would go around this middle track.

It's amazing that the city doesn't pay any attention to the condition survey it commissioned itself. Mansikkala High School has been chosen as a sports-focused high school. Who does it serve to move sports facilities to places that are difficult to reach? After this decision, the city can never call itself carbon neutral. Fortunately, the municipal elections are coming up. I urge everyone to vote. This is about bigger things than just the sports hall/swimming pool.

And more debt in addition to the old ones, it would certainly be cheaper to repair the old one, which serves the people of Imatra very well, there are always users. Who will the new one serve, at least not older people and schoolchildren.

Or neither martial arts nor a bowling alley are suitable for a new sports complex worth over 17 million.
There's a name for this kind of behavior, it's discrimination.
Tax money from martial arts and bowling enthusiasts is fine, but the return is less than for enthusiasts of other sports.

Hopefully, the Sports Hall can be repaired for at least the next 5 years with tolerable annual costs. The already high municipal tax increases do not excite anyone. And a one-time investment of just under 18 million in a single item, knowing the city's financial situation, automatically means an increase in municipal tax.

The relocation of the sports center to Ukkonniemi is another fundamental mistake by Imatra's decision-makers. The relocation does not serve the residents of Imatra, but the opposite. History is still repeating itself in Imatra in terms of decentralization. All services are scattered around Imatra and nothing serves each other. Then we are amazed when the center becomes quiet and deserted.

Let's just move everyone else out of Imatra, this is as deep as it can ever be, I don't recommend anyone move here, ugh.....

Let's just move everyone else out of Imatra, this is as deep as it can ever be, I don't recommend anyone move here, ugh.....

Expensive and stupid use of borrowed money when there are other more necessary things...

Expensive and stupid, additional debt!

The current sports center is in good condition and its large facilities are excellently functional. Building a new one is many times more expensive than maintaining an existing one. Decision-making is based on incorrect calculations and misleading information. The building is healthy and wholesome. Expensive renovation is not needed. The current service offering and facilities are superior - not to mention the location. It is in the interest of the city's economy and all users to keep the current sports center in good condition and in use.