Vuosaari
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Vuosaari is a district in the City of Helsinki, Finland. It is located by the sea in Eastern Helsinki, and with its area of 15.38 square kilometres is geographically the largest district in the city.
Vuosaari is one of the fastest-growing areas in Helsinki. The number of inhabitants has been increasing rapidly since early 1990s, and continues to grow as new residential areas are being built. In 2002 the number of people living in Vuosaari was about 29,000, and it is estimated that by 2010 it will be around 40,000.
Among other things, Vuosaari is noted for its nature and large, relatively unspoilt recreational seashore areas. One of these is Uutela, a popular nature park located in the southeastern corner of Vuosaari. The continual planning of new residential zones has in fact raised criticism, as many people would rather preserve Vuosaari's closeness to nature.
Vuosaari is the location of a new major seaport in Helsinki. Its construction has started and it should be ready for use in 2008. The new harbour project remains another subject of some controversy even after the decision to build it was made in 2002.
A notable portion (16.7% in 2002) of the Vuosaari population are foreigners or have a foreign background. This percentage is probably one of the highest among areas in Helsinki (and the whole of Finland as well), making it yet another thing Vuosaari is known for.
External links
Websites about Vuosaari (in Finnish, mostly):