Built cultural environment

The Museum provides official statements concerning built heritage and the cultural environment in relation to planning, construction and other land use. Authority statements are a central part of cultural environment work.

Requests for statements with attachments should be sent to museo.lausunnot@vaasa.fi

We use the electronic permit services ePermit and Lupapiste. When using these, please submit requests for statements to museo.lausunnot@vaasa.fi

Division of responsibilities

The Ostrobothnian Museum is a regional actor and handles in the Ostrobothnia region matters that concern

• sites of local significance
• sites and environments protected by local detailed and master plans
• regionally significant cultural environments
• nationally significant landscape areas (VAMA areas)
• nationally significant built cultural environments (RKY areas).

The remit of the Finnish Heritage Agency includes

• buildings protected by law
• church heritage protected under the Church Act
• matters related to the preservation and repair of the built heritage of state-owned buildings and university buildings.

The Museum provides advice on repair construction and the care of the cultural environment and offers guidance on repair grant matters. Advice and guidance are offered to private homeowners, municipalities and associations as well as communities.

Preparing a building-historical survey is a good way to begin familiarizing yourself with a building and its phases. When starting renovation work on buildings, it is important to know the history and phases of change of the site/buildings and to examine the building’s current condition. The history of changes often reveals the reasons for the current condition.

It is good to document the building’s current condition when planning repair work. In documentation it is advisable to systematically go through the site describing and recording the basics of structures and materials. At the same time, note any problems and damages.

With good background information about the site, it is easier to find the causes of problems and then direct the necessary repairs to the right places and to the correct extent. It is important not only to repair the damage but also to address the cause of the damage.

According to the principles of conservation repairs, it is always important to consider what can be repaired and what must be replaced. When replacing structural parts, it is advisable to use similar materials as used elsewhere in the structure so that the whole functions in the future. It is also worth considering the extent of the repair.

More information on conservation repairs and traditional construction:

• Korjaustaito
• Valtiolle rakennettu – the publication and site are also a valuable source of information for private builders and contractors.
• Komeat pohjalaiset talot
• More information in Swedish on the Hålla Hus site.

Several cultural environment studies and building inventories are prepared annually in the region, which increase knowledge of the area’s cultural environment. Studies are usually prepared in connection with municipal local or master plan work. The Ostrobothnian Museum participates in inventory projects most often as an expert and in valuation working groups for the assessment of sites. Inventories and cultural environment studies are used as background information for various research and reports, but their primary use is municipal land use planning such as zoning or road plans.

Building-historical surveys (RHS) are also prepared for buildings. A building-historical survey records the construction and use history of sites and provides an overview of construction and alteration phases. Understanding earlier changes, repairs and extensions often helps to solve current problems and to find reasons for deterioration.

A building-historical survey is an important tool for the owner in the use of the building, and it is worth preparing one for your own house. TALON TARINAT – Guide to building-historical surveys

The museum’s own inventories focus mainly on researching regional phenomena.

The Regional Council of Ostrobothnia has also prepared regional cultural landscape and built environment inventories for the regional plan as well as the Modern Built Heritage Study in 2018.

For the national cultural environment, the RKY 2009 inventory confirmed by the Council of State is in use.

In the Ostrobothnia area there are a total of 86 areas and sites defined as nationally valuable as a result of this inventory: in the Ostrobothnia area.

The nationally valuable landscape areas have been updated and these were confirmed by the Council of State in 2021.

There are 9 nationally valuable landscape areas in the Ostrobothnia region.

Ostrobothnia also includes the UNESCO World Heritage site the Kvarken Archipelago

From the Finnish Heritage Agency’s KYPPI portal you can search for various cultural environment site data as well as information on sites protected by special law. The portal also provides reports and studies archived by the Finnish Heritage Agency.

KIOSKI inventory application

The Museum maintains a regional building heritage inventory application together with Seinäjoki Museums, the K. H. Renlund Museum and the regional councils of Ostrobothnia.

The KIOSKI 3.0 application is intended for authority use, but the aim is to open the inventory data to the public and visible to the general public in the future.

Finnish Heritage Agency

The Finnish Heritage Agency can award discretionary grants for the restoration and conservation of culturally and historically valuable buildings. Restoration grants aim to preserve valuable built cultural heritage as part of the national cultural heritage and to support the preservation of building restoration working methods. The application period is open annually in October–November.

ELY Centre

The Ministry of the Environment allocates funding to ELY Centres each year to be distributed as grants for the maintenance of built heritage. The ELY Centre for South Ostrobothnia distributes repair grants to the regions of Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia and Central Ostrobothnia. The application period is open annually in October–November.

The Finnish Local Heritage Federation

The Finnish Local Heritage Federation awards annual support for the repair of community halls nationwide. The purpose of the grant is to preserve the cultural-historical built heritage of community halls, enable repairs that preserve the buildings’ special features and necessary alterations that improve usability. The grant is intended for essential repairs to traditional, established community halls. The application period is open annually in September.