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IN BRIEF

By the City Centre Government as part of the "Tallinn City Centre New Arrivals Project"

Dear Tallinn City Centre Residents,

The month of April is popularly known as St. George's month (Jürikuu). In , the month is also sometimes called sulakuu, or “melting month,” a reference to snowmelt resulting from the warmer spring air. We’ve already seen a couple of warm(ish) and sunny days this month, and if it continues this way, April may be an ideal month for biking � Speaking of which — have you heard about the new cycling path that will connect Park with Tondiraba Park? The project should be complete by 2022. The path will make it easier and safer for cyclists to travel between the City Center and Lasnamäe, and it will also encourage more residents to travel by bike rather than car. For more information, you can read the local news coverage in English: https://news.err.ee/1608168985/new-cycle-path-to-connect-tallinn-city-center-and- lasnamae We have also celebrated Easter this month! In Estonian, Easter is called Lihavõtted (literally “meat taking”), likely a reference to the end of lent, when, if you’ve given up meat for the last 40 days, you can finally indulge once again  If you missed the chocolate eggs and fuzzy rabbits this year, or if you’re just having a rough time getting through the lockdown, don’t worry — you can still celebrate Orthodox Easter with the Russian- speaking community in May. Have you already seen the news we covered in the “Tallinn in Brief” newsletter? As you may have noticed, this newsletter now covers the entire city of Tallinn rather than just the City Centre district. Hopefully you’ll enjoy this change!

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Photo by Sebastian Staines

This project "Yard Makeover" will give 20 housing

cooperations the opportunity to renovate their yards

Photo by Vladimir Istomin

42 applications for the yard makeover allowance were sent in by housing cooperatives from the City Centre district. 27 of them got through to the next round. In the end, 20 applications were deemed to fit the criteria for the project, so the evaluation committee confirmed their funding. The following criteria were taken into consideration during the evaluation: the improvement of the general appearance of the urban space, the overall arrangement of

https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ 2/8 30.6.2021 https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ the yard, safety and the amount of self-financing. Most of the cooperatives applied for the allowance in order to fix or improve their paving, renew fences, build bin enclosures, install underground waste containers and bicycle sheds and upgrade their lighting solutions. The Yard Makeover project ("Hoovid korda") is directed at fixing and improving the safety of the yards of apartment buildings. The city will compensate up to 70% of the cost, reaching up to 16 000 euros in a calendar year. One yard is eligible for up to 40 000 euros of allowance, so you can apply more than once.

New parking spots for bikes in Tallinn City Centre

With the initiative from the Tallinn City Centre Government, bicycle racks will be installed in nine new locations throughout the Tallinn city centre. The district administration has acquired three different types of bike racks where bicycles can be conveniently fastened by their frames. By now, other city offices have agreed to build bicycle parking facilities in three parks: Politseiaed (Police Garden), Falgi park and Tuvi (Pigeon) Park. The remaining six parking facilities will be installed in locations requested by the citizens (we conducted a poll on social media at the beginning of the year). These are the locations that met the necessary technical requirements: near the bus stop on Pärnu mnt 82, between the Rimi store and the re-use centre on Tatari 64, near the Kalev stadium and near the Forum centre on Hobujaama 2. In the Old Town, bike racks will be installed near Musumägi, at the crossing of Pärnu mnt and Valli street and near the Tallinn City Centre District administration on Nunne 18.

A ticket machine now operates the gate of the

Convent Ruins

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From now on, visitors can purchase the €2 ticket to visit the Pirita Convent from the ticket vending machine. Before, the tickets had to purchased from the box office, but now an electronic ticket system will let guests into the ruins. You can pay with card or your mobile phone. The revenue received from ticket sales will go towards the maintenance of the ruins. For example, the territory of the monastery requires regular upkeep and so do the walls of the monastery. Also, the fence surrounding the territory of the monastery will have to replaced due to its deprecation. Replacing the fence will cost about 40,000 euros. In addition to the new entrance system, the territory has been equipped with surveillance cameras. The live feed of the cameras is monitored by the municipal police. The ruins of Pirita monastery are open every day, 08:00-20:00.

The home medical brigade can be called for children up to

12 during April and May

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In Tallinn, starting from 2 April, parents can call the home medical brigade for children up to 12 years old with acute symptoms during the weekend – for example if parents have not been able to see their family physician or if the child gets sick during the weekend. The home medical brigade was created to offer a sense of security for the parents, provide faster medical advice by providing check-ups, and relieve the workload of ambulance services, which is already higher than ever. The target group of the home brigade are children with acute symptoms who do not need urgent medical care, but whose parents have difficulties getting to the doctor’s office or have found the advice from the helpline insufficient. The home medical brigade can be called on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 14 to 22. The number 69 71 145 is answered by the Tallinn EMS dispatcher from 12-20 who forwards the call to the brigade. Up to ten visits are accepted every day which will be fulfilled on the same day.

Tallinn declared 12th among 50 of the smartest cities in

the world

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Photo by Ilya Orehov

Eden Strategy Institute, a consultation and strategy bureau in Singapore, ranked world cities by their smart solutions in their list ”Top 50 Smart City Governments 2020/2021” in which Tallinn was ranked number 12. The smartest city governments stood out with successful participation in co-operational projects and partnering with focus groups from both the public and private sector. The Institute considered the administration’s ability to use digital solutions and data in providing services and making decisions, as well as the amount of attention turned to gaining the trust of the citizens and involving them in government. The top three smartest cities in 2021 are Singapore, Seoul and London. Some of Tallinn’s neighbouring cities were also represented: Helsinki in number 5, Moscow in 14 and Stockholm in 50. More than 230 cities were evaluated and city governments were encouraged to send in additional data, reports and results. Later, they conducted interviews with officials from the smartest governments to confirm and receive further information about the unique challenges and solutions each city faces. The full report, including detailed articles about coping with the COVID-19 crisis, sustainability, data protection funding, involving citizens, detailed evaluations of the cities and much more can be found on www.smartcitygovt.com.

The Bridge on promedane is closed due to

construction

On the commission of the Tallinn Urban Environment and Public Works Department the woodwork on the bridge on the Rocca al Mare promenade will be replaced. The bridge will

https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ 6/8 30.6.2021 https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ be closed during construction. To bypass the construction please use the pathways on Paldiski mnt, Soodi street and Lahepea street.

The muncipal police issues a reminder: consumption of

alcohol in public is prohibited

Photo by Erik Mclean

The first warm days of spring have come with large amounts of public drinking. The municipal police wants to remind everyone that consuming alcoholic beverages in public spaces is prohibited. Not complying with this law can be punished by a maximum fine of 600 euros.

Did you know?

April is known to many Estonians as “juice month” (mahlakuu), a nod to the increased sap production in trees this time of year. A popular drink in the early spring is kasemahl, or birch water. Birch water is extracted by drilling into the trunk of birch trees and allowing the watery sap to drip into containers. The resulting liquid is light and clear, with a slightly sweet taste and a silky texture. Birch water can only be https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ 7/8 30.6.2021 https://kesklinn.sendsmaily.net/template/preview/id/8/ collected for about one month in early spring — usually around April — when the sap flows freely and when the taste is still sweet. After green leaves appear on the trees, the sap becomes bitter and is no longer pleasant to drink.

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