The role of municipalities has changed recently due to changes in society and the world around them. With the social and health care reform, a significant part of municipal tasks was transferred to welfare areas. In the new situation, the role of municipalities is increasingly focused on developing vitality, general well-being and livelihoods.

The COVID-19 pandemic increased migration to the countryside, and the long-standing migration from rural areas to cities turned in the other direction, at least temporarily. Remote working from second homes increased significantly, and remote working became mandatory in many organizations.

Workplaces took a digital leap forward as new applications for holding remote meetings and conferences were learned to use. Some municipalities and regions fared better than others in this change. This is due to the attractiveness of regions, which is influenced by many factors. Some of the factors can be influenced by active measures, while others are due to, for example, location or the availability of jobs and training, which are more difficult and slower to influence.

The aim of the project is to highlight the importance of rural areas for society as a whole and thereby make the voice of rural areas heard in public debate.

Nature tourism and everything related to it have also increased in popularity during the corona period and the trend is global. In tourism, municipal borders are not significant, what is essential for the tourist is the availability of services and an interesting offer. Tourism involves many sub-genres, such as cycling, nature tourism or cultural tourism. All nature and rural tourism have one thing in common: the importance of sustainability as a selection criterion for consumers is growing.

In Northern Satakunta and Northwest Pirkanmaa, tourism has been developed for a few years under the Geopark brand. Cooperation and networks have been built between municipalities, companies and communities. Services have been productized, infrastructure has been improved and sales have been developed. However, much remains to be done so that a nature, cycling or cultural tourist planning a trip could easily get a package for a few days with accommodation and services and pay for it in one place.

Geopark is an international brand and network, so the goal is also to significantly increase the number of foreign tourists. This requires a lot of expertise and development of operations from service providers. Many everyday things for us are an unforgettable experience for someone coming from a completely different environment.

Small rural municipalities have very limited resources in terms of both attractiveness and tourism development. That is why the idea of ​​launching a regional development project has arisen. Finland has a lot of beautiful countryside and standing out among that crowd requires ingenuity and creative solutions. Attention and emotions must be aroused, even at the risk that not everyone will like the chosen methods.

This project aims to actively increase the attractiveness of the area for those dreaming of moving to the country, those with multiple locations and those looking for a job. The main idea is that by joining forces, we achieve impact and visibility, and by building unified operating methods, we achieve continuity for the project's measures even after the project.

The second key focus of the project is the development of tourism based on the area's natural strengths and the determined continuation of the development work started under the Geopark brand. The municipalities that are not part of the Geopark area (Merikarvia, Ikaalinen and Pomarkku) are closely involved in the cooperation and are significant tourism municipalities with their own strengths and special characteristics.

According to the agreement, the municipality appoints a contact person and uses the work of various people to implement the measures to the extent necessary to achieve the objectives of the measures. In addition, the municipality informs about the project through its own channels and activates the association field and companies to act in the project. If the municipality chooses measures that generate costs that are not included in the project plan, the municipality is responsible for them itself. However, the project's human resources can also be used for these. Aktiivien Pohjois-Satakunta ry handles the administration of the project and pays the employees. A steering group is elected for the project, which meets at least twice a year.

The project duration is 2,5 years and with this agreement, the municipalities do not commit to putting new money into the project budget, but instead use municipal funds saved from 2014-2022 for the self-financing portion.

The accompanying project report - Networking for Attraction - provides more detailed information about the project's background, objectives, resources, measures and budget.

Networking for Attraction project

Cooperation agreement, appendix 1

In connection with the approval of the 2023 budget, the municipal council decided to establish a working group to prepare a concrete plan for utilizing the health center's facilities in accordance with the needs of the municipality's residents and general service need guidelines. Funding for the preparation of the plan will be reserved from the planning appropriations for technical measures.

The current contract expires at the end of February. Negotiations have been held with Ikaalisten-Parkanon Puhelin Oy to extend the contract. The monthly charge is €4.950 / month (VAT 0) and includes full outsourcing of ICT services.

The contract period is March 1, 2024-February 28, 2025, with an option to extend the contract for the period March 1, 2025-February 28, 2026. The price for half a month will be charged for the July closure period.

Appendix 2 offer

Using the option requires mutual approval. The transport operator proposed a new price of 1,70 VAT 0 /kilometer. The current contract is 1,15 VAT 0 /kilometer. Due to rising costs and low use of the service (1-2 customers per week), the service will be terminated at the end of the current contract period on 31 July 2024.

The municipality received a state inheritance (Salomaa), which the municipal government made a decision to receive in 2009. The inheritance was handed over to the municipality to be used for elderly care, child protection, and rehabilitation and support services for war veterans and disabled people.

According to the decision of the municipal government, the plan for the use of funds is presented to the municipal government.

The municipal government decided in 2022 that, from the beginning of 2023, the inheritance funds would be used to promote well-being and health for the original target groups of the inheritance. The promotion of well-being and health was left to the municipality to organize from 1 January 2023.

Appendix 3 Operation plan

Initiative made through kuntalaisaloite.fi.

Content of the initiative:

The Kihniö Association of the Finnish Pensioners' Union is launching a municipal initiative regarding free gym hours for pensioners.
Previously, when the municipality had free shifts, they were used and had participants.
Pensioners will continue to be a growing group in the municipality of Kihniö. The Pensioners' Association also has over 200 members. We want to encourage our own members and all pensioners in Kihniö to take care of their fitness and health.
Kihniö has good facilities for exercise, including a cross-country trail, a swimming pool section for water sports, and an excellent gym with equipment.
We hope that at least financial issues should not be an obstacle to movement.
The Kihniö Pension Association can take responsibility for opening the doors for the gym shift. Otherwise, active participants would act at their own risk.
If the municipality receives funding, for example through a project for exercise advice, help would of course be welcome. Gym shift time, for example, Tue at 10:00.

Response to the initiative:

Previous free shifts for seniors have been possible thanks to project funding received by the municipality of Kihniö. The purpose of the project was to get older people excited about exercise and using the gym. In other words, the project wanted to give an impetus to independent gym use by guiding them in the use of equipment and how to operate the gym in general.

The municipality of Kihniö does not have the financial resources to hire a full-time sports counselor to continue the project's activities. The gym rental costs are also significantly high, approximately 30.000 euros per year. Because of the above, the financial side is also important. However, the municipality has kept the gym fees quite reasonable and senior citizens also receive a 50% discount on the price.

Equality of different groups (Equality Act):

According to Section 5 of the Non-Discrimination Act, the Authority must assess how its operations affect different population groups and how equality is otherwise implemented in its operations, and take the necessary measures to promote the implementation of equality.

It is also undeniable that using the gym is a good form of health-promoting exercise for all age groups, and the municipality encourages it with low prices. Targeting free services only to a certain population group is not in line with the Equality Act and is therefore not possible.

The municipality of Kihniö has received good feedback from the gym project for seniors and is striving to have a similar project implemented again if possible.

Technical Committee 28.3.2022 § 40 (previous discussion)

The Kihniö Finns Party council group has initiated a carpet cleaning service;

"Recently, there have been inquiries from local residents and seasonal residents about a carpet cleaning place. There used to be one in the municipality, and many municipalities still have dry cleaning places."
The Finns Party council group proposes that the municipality investigate the establishment of a carpet washing facility, for example near the so-called Knuuttila pumping station or a similar location, where the washing water could be led to the sewer network and would thus not increase the load on the water system."

Proposed decision: The Technical Committee will hold the necessary discussion on the matter and propose that more detailed investigations be carried out by the technical department.

Decision: The motion for a resolution was adopted unanimously.

Technical Committee 19.10.2022 § 92

The following municipal initiative has been received by the municipality of Kihniö through the Municipal Initiative Service;

Kihniö's services for motorists are based on one TB cold storage station. Kihniö residents are forced to support Russia's war of aggression, the nearest other gas stations are in Parkano and Virra. A high-power charging point has been in Virra for some time in the Kitunen Kievari parking area, and one is coming to Parkano.

There is an excellent rest area on Kantatie 23 on both sides of the road at the intersection with Laakakalliontie, on top of a hill in both directions, starting downhill: It's tempting to stop. Now the rest area mainly serves barbecue, which is fine. But the place is literally begging for a high-power charging point for electric cars and a cooling station.

There is no valid local plan in the area, the village's plan area extends to the cemetery. The land outside the road area is privately owned. There would be good space for expansion, especially on the south side of the road.

In the master plan currently being prepared, the municipality of Kihniö must plan an electric car charging point, a cooling station, and other services for motorists in addition to the current barbecue.

Even before the zoning process, the municipality of Kihniö must immediately begin negotiations with landowners and potential operators, of which the most potential from the perspective of the existing distribution network are ST1 and SEO, possibly also Neste.

The area in question is located outside the central business district of Kihniö and the only operator in the area is a grill, which is open every day in the summer, and only on weekends in the winter.

Proposed decision:

The Technical Committee will hold the necessary discussion on the matter and make a decision based on it.

Further information on the decision:

The Technical Committee proposes that the Development Park investigate possible actors for the project in question. The Technical Committee thus considers the matter to have been dealt with.

The Technical Committee has issued a report on 31 January 2024 § 10

The municipality has received an initiative through the municipal initiative service.

The following three wind power projects are currently underway in the Kihniö municipality: Myyränkangas (29 turbines, capacity 290 MW), Lylyharju (14 pcs/140 MW) and Mäntyperä (3 pcs/24 MW). All of these projects require a master plan in the Kihniö municipality. In addition, the Vermassalo power plant (25 turbines/250 MW) is in the planning stage in the Virtai municipality. The Vermassalo electricity transmission is planned to be implemented through the Myyränkangas project.

All of the above-mentioned power projects require the implementation of the Kristiinankaupunki-Nokia power transmission network planned by Fingrid. The power line connection will be implemented with shared poles so that the 110 kV power line is located in the intermediate span of the 400 kV power line. Unlike other route sections, two parallel 400+110 kV power line groups are planned between Kristiinankaupunki and Isojoki. The new terrain corridor is being examined on the section between Karvia and Parkano, where two alternative routes are being compared. The terrain surveys and general design required for construction will be carried out according to the preliminary schedule in 2024–2026. The construction of the power line is estimated to take place in 2026–2028.

Fingrid's route solution for the section between Karvia and Parkano determines which transmission connection, SWE1 or SWE2, will be used to transmit electricity from the Myyränkanka and Vermassalo wind farms.

The power transmission corridors require large areas in the Kihniö municipality. It is not possible to complete the planning of wind power projects until Fingrid has received a solution, which is likely to be in 2026 at the earliest.

In addition to wind farms, a 100-hectare solar power park is also planned for Aitoneva in Kihniö, which also requires an electricity transmission connection. Other projects are also underway.

A comprehensive master plan covering the entire municipality must be prepared for the Kihniö municipality, because the fragmented project-specific partial master plan has fragmented land use in the municipality for decades. The partial master plan for all projects located in the Kihniö municipality and affecting the municipality must be suspended and a complete master plan must be prepared for the entire municipality so that the actual route of Fingrid's cross-country corridor is known and only then

An initiative has been received by the municipality through the municipal initiative service. The initiative was published on 6 February 2024.

Kihniö municipality must begin preparations for municipal merger during 2024

The municipality of Kihniö will make a loss of over €500 in 2023. In addition, the municipality's balance sheet recorded an artificial capital gain of €2.115 million in 2020, which arose from an unjustified overvaluation of assets in connection with the establishment of Kihniö Water and Heat Oy.

The municipality of Kihniö is aiming to find savings of half a million euros for 2024. Even if such savings are temporarily found by laying off personnel, the municipality will have to make the same amount of savings again in 2025 due to the TE reform (50-100 thousand euros) and the known additional cuts in government transfers (approx. 146 thousand euros). In 2026, rental income from social welfare properties will end, with an impact of 440 thousand euros, and further cuts in government transfers and the TE reform will continue, meaning that the need for savings is one million euros.

The municipality of Kihniö will not be able to meet its statutory obligations towards its residents even with drastic tax increases. An increase in tax revenue of half a million euros would require raising the tax rate from the current 8,9 percent to 10,1 percent in 2025 and to over 12 percent in 2026. In addition, the municipality's balance sheet would still have an artificial asset of 2.115 thousand euros uncovered.

No non-tax revenue is known for the municipality of Kihniö until the potentially uncertain wind power projects begin to generate property taxes in 2028 at the earliest.

According to the population forecast of Statistics Finland, in 2032, Kihniö will have less than 1450 residents, of whom less than 600 are employed and approximately 750 are retired. According to the forecast, there will be 162 people under the age of 15.

The municipality is no longer viable and will not become so as the population decreases and ages. Only through municipal mergers can even statutory services be provided to the residents.

Preparations for the municipal union must begin now before the 2025 municipal elections, in which the fate of Kihniö will be decided.

Kihniö municipal government's response:

The municipal government states that the challenging situation in municipal finances affects all Finnish municipalities/cities regardless of their size. Municipalities, including the municipality of Kihniö, are forced to adjust their finances and review their municipal taxes as a result of state transfer cuts and other cost increases. The municipality of Kihniö states that an independent municipality is the best guardian and developer of its area and has no intention of starting municipal merger negotiations.

Boys' Day is on the calendar on May 16, but it is not recognized or celebrated. Girls' Day has been celebrated prominently on October 11 for many years. Politicians in Finland have sided with the "girls' side" and girls have been invited to replace CEOs, ministers, editors-in-chief and mayors for a day, accompanied by huge media attention and prominent interviews. For example, the mayor of Tampere and CEO of Finnair invited a girl to replace him last autumn. The boys' side has been quiet.

Boys in Finland face challenges in academic achievement compared to girls, and the gap in academic achievement between boys and girls is one of the largest among the countries participating in the PISA study. It is estimated that even almost one in five boys who finish comprehensive school have reading skills that are too weak to succeed in further studies or in working life. Dropouts are at high risk of exclusion.

In his book “The Missing Half Million”, Varma CEO Risto Murto is concerned about the particularly high rate of childlessness among young men in Finland. Childlessness is strongly linked to marginalization.

In such a situation, offering empowerment only to girls who do better in school is neither fair nor right. Why do we adults bully boys like this, telling them that they don't deserve the attention girls deserve? Why should boys have to fend for themselves and give up the opportunities for experiences that are offered to girls? Why don't we see the long-term negative effects of our actions on society as a whole?

There is still time until Boys' Day, whether the benefits of Kihniö and boys could even be combined to make a greater sum. If Kihniö decided to move forward with celebrating Boys' Day on a fast schedule, it would still have time to challenge other Finnish municipalities to celebrate Boys' Day. The challenge would have positive effects both for the municipality itself and, through the improvement of the status of boys, for society as a whole. The Association of Local Authorities could move forward with a possible challenge to other municipalities.

The mayor presents and provides information on current issues and events that are pending and in preparation.

According to Section 1 of the Pre-emption Act (5.8.1977/608), a municipality has a right of pre-emption in the sale of real estate located in the municipality in order to acquire land for community development and for recreational and conservation purposes. The right of pre-emption means the municipality's right to redeem the sold real estate for the purchase price agreed upon by the seller and the buyer. When using the pre-emption, the municipality takes the place of the buyer and acquires ownership of the area that is the subject of the sale under the terms of the deed of sale.

The municipality must also compensate the buyer for direct costs related to the transaction and pay interest on the costs in accordance with Section 3, Paragraph 2 of the Interest Act (633/1982). According to Section 21 of the Pre-emption Act, the municipal government decides on the exercise of the pre-emption right. The decision must be made and the registration authority, i.e. the Land Survey, notified of it within three months of the certification of the transfer deed.

The decision must be given without delay as a demonstrable notification to the buyer and seller.

Attached material: property transfer list

Real estate transfer notices:

3 property transfer notices

Official decisions:

Municipal Mayor Section 1

Director of Finance and Administration §

Financial Manager § -

Proceedings:

Technical Committee 31.1.2024

§ 1 Legality and quorum of the meeting

§ 2 Selection of the minutes inspectors

§ 3 Review of the need to update the Kihniö groundwater protection plan

§ 4 Joint permit application for rock excavation and crushing on property RN:o 250-403-14-36

Border pond

§ 5 Meeting times and convening of the Technical Committee in 2024

§ 6 Inspection and display of the minutes of the Technical Committee meetings

§ 7 Approval of the Technical Committee's budget utilization plan for 2024

§ 8 Financial performance 1.1 - 31 March 2024

§ 9 Council initiative / Carpet cleaning place

§ 10 Municipal initiative / Charging point and cooling station for the grillinmäki resting place in Kihniö

§ 11 Municipal initiative / Light in the school yard

§ 12 Service agreement for the management and cleaning of green areas in the municipality of Kihniö

§ 13 Statement on the draft Leppäsentie waterfront development plan

§ 14 Current affairs of the Technical Director

Youth Council 1.2.2024

Audit Committee April 23.1.2024, XNUMX

Central Election Commission 26.1.2024

Arrivals:

1. Pirkanmaa Ely: Employment review December 2023, Kihniö unemployment rate 8,3 (7,5)

2. Youth Council: Activity Report 2023

3. Youth Council: Election of representatives and alternate representatives to the boards and municipal council

The following municipal initiatives have been received by the municipality:

- The administrative regulations of the municipality of Kihniö must be changed

-Kihniö Municipality's land use planning should be transferred from the vitality committee to the technical committee

The initiatives are available to read. In the Municipal Initiative Service