Colloquially known as ‘the Finnish Houses’, the Osiedle Jazdów estate is back in the news after plans were revealed that would see its current function terminated by the city.
Colloquially known as ‘the Finnish Houses’, the Osiedle Jazdów estate is back in the news after plans were revealed that would see its current function terminated by the city.
A remarkable micro-community found in the heart of the city, the Finnish Houses have stood since 1945. Tangled in the story of the post-war rebirth of Warsaw, this enchanting enclave began life with the decision to rebuild the town that the Nazis had left as a smoking sea of rubble.
Making full use of easy-to-assemble cabins confiscated from Finland by Stalin as reparations, 95 of these were built in the area of Jazdów. In July, 1945, the first 30 tenants moved in, and on August 1st, the development was officially opened, ostensibly housing the architects and engineers charged with reconstructing Warsaw.
Defined by their quaint wooden style and black tar roofs, these 54 sq/m units quickly became home to a thriving self-contained world. Yet whilst many have since been demolished, a core have stubbornly remained, fulfilling both a residential and community role – as things stand, currently many find themselves used as NGOs and cultural hubs.
But having survived a scare in 2011 when it was announced they would be demolished entirely, the spirit of this unique area is again under threat after plans were radically altered at the start of the year.
Under a new draft development plan, residential functions would cease with the chalet-like cabins instead transformed into pavilions that would possibly even house gastronomic functions. Whilst City Hall claims that the project would safeguard the remaining houses and see the urban layout protected, activists have voiced alarm.
“Liquidating the city’s housing stock in the conditions of a huge crisis in access to housing is not only irrational, but also unethical,” says the Otwarte Jazdów organization. According to some, a worst-case scenario could even see this charming little world transformed into a sea of bars.
Issuing a call to arms on the Miasto Jest Nasze page, Jan Mencwel said: “Ten years after the launch of the Otwarte Jazdów initiative, the Finnish Houses must be defended again. This time not from demolition, but from destruction of their character. The Warsaw authorities want to evict their inhabitants from the houses and turn it into an enclave of expensive pubs.”
