For example, a new vitality director position has been established in Pelkosenniemi, to which Sari Niemi, development manager of the LAB University of Applied Sciences, was selected last week.
According to Pelkosenniemi’s new administrative rules approved in May, the director of vitality is responsible for, among other things, the municipality’s land use planning and housing construction.
According to Vauhkonen, the development of Pyhätunturi is decisive for the vitality of the entire municipality.
– Tourism is wanted all year round, which would bring permanent residents to the municipality and start families. The goal is to increase the number of residents to over a thousand, says Vauhkonen.
According to Statistics Finland, Pelkosenniemi had 924 inhabitants at the end of 2001. According to preliminary data from Statistics Finland, the population had risen to 932 inhabitants in July.
Turnip appeal to tourism
Päivi Vauhkonen emphasizes that other villages in Pelkosenniemi also need to be developed. It must take into account their natural livelihoods, such as farming, reindeer husbandry and forestry.
He highlights the villages of Kairala and Suvanto that were not burned in the war in Lapland.
– For example, turnips are cultivated in Kairala. Beer is made from it, and there are plans for, for example, the World Championships in turnip lifting. The villages could also become part of a cycling route, he says.
Vauhkonen also raises the recently completed new school as an attractive factor in Pelkosenniemi.
Last year’s financial statements of Pelkosenniemi had a surplus of about one million euros. In total, the municipality’s balance sheet has a surplus of EUR 3.7 million.
_Edit August 28, 2022 at 1:36 p.m.: The story has been corrected to say Sari Nieme’s current workplace is LAB University of Applied Sciences instead of Lahti University of Applied Sciences. LAB University of Applied Sciences was born when Lahti University of Applied Sciences and Saimaa University of Applied Sciences merged on January 1, 2020. Niemi has also worked at Lahti University of Applied Sciences._
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