The necessary agreements and their steering effect
Urban development and construction projects are typically collaborative in nature, with varied and well-established contracting procedures. When you are able to better define and measure the sustainable and smart objectives of an urban area, it is easier to manage these in contracts.
If precise targets cannot be defined at an early stage, or if you do not want to set them yet, development commitments can be used as a tool to raise the level of sustainability solutions for the project to be implemented. You can also use a two-stage agreement, whereby an initial preliminary agreement or letter of intent is drawn up, and once the objectives and responsibilities have been specified, a binding agreement or agreements are drawn up for implementation by the parties of the co-creation consortium.
Commitments and agreements can describe the processes for companies offering digital, technological and social innovation and solutions to get them involved in the development work.
Example: Espoo Kera area development commitment
The idea behind the Kera area commitment is to guide the different actors in urban development in the region towards sustainable solutions. The commitment is part of the land use agreement for the Kera area. The commitment and its development objectives are approved by signing a land use agreement. In the event of land ownership changes, the landowner is obliged to transfer this commitment. The commitment covers areas such as cooperation, circular economy services, clean energy, housing and smooth everyday life, planning and construction, demolition and land masses, mobility and logistics, and smart city solutions.
The commitment has involved a wide range of partners in the Puhdas ja älykäs Kera (Clean and Smart Kera) project. The Kera development commitment is described as a new tool to guide actors in the Kera area under construction to work together on long-term sustainable development solutions. There is no similar development commitment attached to a land use agreement in any other part of Finland, as far as is known.