Vellamonkatu 5, completed in 1991, has been used by the staff of Helsinki Prison. The building has 4 floors and 48 apartments. The property is owned by the Finnish State Senate Properties. The building borders on the prison area, so there is no outer fence as with the neighbouring buildings.
Talo on 1990-luvun alun betonipintainen ja sen ilme on pelkistetty ja funktionalistinen. Julkisivua rytmittävät syvennykset, kulmaikkunat sekä verkkomaiset parvekeselementit, jotka tuovat vaihtelevuutta muuten suoraviivaiseen massaan.
In spring 2025, the building will gradually be emptied of its inhabitants. Apparently, the Senate Properties is trying to sell the building.
Tumppi Varonen writes in her book The Boy Who Wanted to Fly that before the house was built there was no-man's-land in the same places: jungle, savannah, dog park, reed field. That's where people gathered, played and made new friends.
What it looked like before:
Poikia hiekoitushiekkalaatikon ympärillä Vellamonkatu 3:n kohdalla (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Näkymä Hermannista. Oikealla Vellamonkatu 5 (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Näkymä Vellamonkadulta (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Näkymä Vellamonkadulta koilliseen Vegankadulle (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Vellamonkatu 5, 7. Vellamonkatu 7 on purettu 1960-luvun taitteessa (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Vellamonkatu (Helsingin kaupunginmuseo / Finna)
Albums.lasipalatsi.fi: Photos from 1994, Photo from 1974
Päivitetty 26.12.2025
9 replies on “Vellamonkatu 5”
I live opposite the house in question, and I was wondering when someone told me that the house has to be empty by the beginning of March or April, what does that mean? Is the house under threat of demolition(hopefully) because aesthetically really ugly. So what will replace it? Demolition(as I guessed above), or building a new one, renovating the exterior, or what will happen to the house?
Good question! I wish I knew. I've heard rumours of renovation or demolition, but I haven't found any official information. I also looked at the City of Helsinki's map service and couldn't find any zoning changes or anything like that. I was also supposed to ask someone who was leaving, but I didn't happen to come across anyone suitable. I live next door myself, so I'm interested in the fate of the house.
I asked the question in a Facebook group in the district and a former resident of the house wrote that the Senate Real Estate is putting the house up for sale, so the future of the property is open. This is information from the Senate.
Damn, there was an error in my previous post po.from someone I heard from etc ....
I've also wondered about that house, living next door to it now. It looks like an empty house now. It's ugly and in that sense it should be demolished, but on the other hand I wouldn't want a building site of many years' standing next to it either. Hermanni is a nice and quiet area to live in, beautiful. 70's atmosphere. It's a pity that the shop on the corner of Vegankatu and Orioninkatu is no longer there.
It's not the prettiest, but I'd still be in favour of keeping it. The demolition of houses is far too careless from an environmental point of view. The carbon footprint of a concrete frame is really big. The house needs a major renovation, but it shouldn't be completely demolished. And you never know what the building will look like in the future - people's tastes change over time. A major renovation would also be much less inconvenient for the neighbours than demolishing and building a new one.
A small grocery store or kiosk in Hermann would be great, but it's hard to believe that such a thing would actually happen, it must be hard to make them profitable.
Hermann is indeed a nice, peaceful and beautiful gem - a gem few people know about. 🙂
I think the house is nice looking and the exterior could be made even better by renovating it. Of course, the interior might be in a bad state. The location is really good. Very quiet place but centrally located, you would think it would sell and on the other hand annoying empty ”gazebo”.”
I'm right there with you! The quiet but central location is easy to sign up to when you live right next door.
Saamani (epävirallisen) tiedon mukaan talo ollaan purkamassa. Talosta on 21.1.2026 katkaistu lämmitys ja se irrotetaan kaukolämmöstä viikolla 5/2026. Kaivuri tulee tällöin kaivamaan kaukolämpöputket pois.