Community Sauna Plan Wins at Tohlopin Beach Site

Tamperelainen reports that Tampere city has chosen Tohlopin Uimaseura to build the public sauna on the Tohlopin Beach site. The decision by property director Virpi Ekholm comes after five companies and three associations entered the open bid, with the Laulujoutsen concept selected as the winner; the ruling is not yet final. The rent for the site is set at €7,200 per year for a 30-year term.

Tamperelainen notes that club officials describe the result as a foregone conclusion and highlight that the project aims to keep communal winter swimming affordable and accessible. An online petition supporting the project gathered 817 signatures in October 2025 to January 2026. Tohlopin Uimaseura, founded in 2012 as a cold-swim group, has grown to about 450 members, offering activities such as sauna yoga and wood-splitting events; membership costs are kept low (€4 for members, €6 for non-members, with a €15 joining fee and a €15 annual fee).

The plan calls for financing through a mix of club reserves, private investor contributions from members, and bank loans, with a new company to manage the property and another to operate the sauna. The projected price tag for the site is €0.5–0.6 million. Architect Sampo Vallius designed Laulujoutsen, prioritizing accessibility and the sauna club’s wishes for a communal gathering place, including a sauna master who would assist visitors. Two wood-fired saunas are planned: a large one for 35 and a smaller one for about 20, plus showers, changing rooms, a lounge area, and a glass-walled terrace warmed by a fireplace. Construction would aim for a mid- to late-2027 opening if all permits are granted, while the current barrel sauna at Tohloppi lake remains active until then.

According to YLE, the Tohlopin Swimming Club plans to begin construction planning as soon as the lease decision becomes final. The Aamulehti report on the Härmälänranta project notes that Saunatemppeli Oy plans a timber-built complex for 40–50 people with several separate saunas under one roof and changing/washing facilities, focusing on sauna rituals and events; there are no plans for a yurt sauna at Härmälänranta, and building permits are targeted for spring; both plots still await final legal approval. For Tohloppi, Aamulehti notes that earthworks will start before the next frost, with a building permit targeted for submission before summer and an opening planned for summer 2027 or autumn at the latest; the current barrel sauna at Tohloppi attracts more than 10,000 sauna-goers each year prior to the opening of the new facilities.