Nominate the most beautiful building in Lahti – what would you show a visitor?

Lahti, a youthful city just 120 years old, isn’t widely known for its architecture. Yet. That’s why now is the perfect time for locals to highlight the city’s hidden gems and personal favourites.

Is beauty really in the eye of the beholder?

Lahti is home to many beautiful buildings, representing various architectural styles from different decades. Lahti’s architectural policy program, Apoli, also features the city’s architectural landscape. The vote winner will be announced in the autumn during the Apoli Forum.

– We have many stylish post-war buildings that people might not always recognise as beautiful. What’s special about Lahti is how the varied terrain makes many buildings stand out. Through this vote, we want to highlight Lahti’s unique character for locals and visitors, says Johanna Palomäki, City Architect of Lahti.

The competition has two phases. Participants can suggest multiple favourite buildings from May 6 to May 25 and explain their choices. In the voting phase, the public will choose from the proposed buildings and additional nominees selected by the Apoli panel. The final vote to decide the most beautiful building will take place over the summer, and the winner will be revealed at the Apoli Forum in the fall.

The most popular buildings will also be featured in self-guided architectural walking tours designed for visitors, helping people discover Lahti’s built environment in a new way.

On the omalahti.fi website, you can choose an automatic translation in English, Swedish, Russian, Ukrainian, or Arabic.