The OPUS research project meets the challenges of urban planning and every life by pursuing to build a bridge between the planning practices, scientific knowledge and the experimental knowledge of the stakeholders. The desirable elements of the “urban planning as a learning process” concept include transparency of the process and interaction of all key actors. The results aim to benefit and satisfy the members of the public-private-people-partnership involved in the processes of urban planning, design and construction. 

The aim of OPUS research project is to develop a new model for urban planning: based on collaboration with residents, public sector and private sector (P4 model = public-private-people -partnership).

The model will be created through the simulation of ongoing urban planning processes and actions of the stakeholders in various pilot cases.

OPUS also develops new interactive methods and tools for collaborative planning (web based development forums, web-based SoftGIS method, interactive process mapping).

There are four pilot cases in this research project:
Three of the cases: case Suurpelto,  case centre of Espoo and case Nupuri are located in city of Espoo (Finland’s second largest city) and the fourth case Kangasala is in the Tampere area. Kangasala is a rural municipality with 26 000 inhabitants.

OPUS is an interdisciplinary research project between two laboratories at the Helsinki University of Technology: the Enterprise Simulation Laboratory SimLab at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and the Laboratory of Urban Planning and Design at the Department of Architecture. The Family research unit of the Family Federation of Finland collaborates in OPUS as an affiliated partner.

The research project is funded by National Technology Agency of Finland Tekes (80%) and the Partners (20%). 

Helsinki University of Technology / SimLab
Espoo
Finland
Riitta Smeds (Head of the OPUS Project)

Helsinki University of Technology / Centre for Urban and Regional Studies (YTK)
Espoo
Finland
Marketta Kyttä (SoftGIS)

01/01/2005

case

Urban Policy > Social inclusion & integration

Quality of life