Tarkoitamaa

Tarkoitamaa is a Finnish term used in land-use planning to describe land that has been designated for a specific intended use within a zoning or master planning framework. The word is a compound of tarkoitus (purpose or intended use) and maa (land). In official texts, the form tarkoitusmaa is sometimes used, with tarkoitamaa serving as the inflected form referring to the land.

In practice, tarkoitamaa indicates the purpose for which a parcel is allowed to be used, such as residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or public用途. The designation helps determine what activities may be carried out, as well as the permissible building rights, densities, and other restrictions. It is a fundamental element of the planning system in Finland, and it appears in documents like master plans (yleiskaava) and detailed plans (asemakaava), which assign different tarkoitamaa zones to different uses.

The designation can be changed through planning processes, typically via a plan amendment (kaavamuutos) or the adoption of a new or revised master or detailed plan. Changes usually involve an assessment of impacts, public notification, and opportunities for resident participation, and they must align with broader planning goals and regulations.

Examples of tarkoitamaa labels might include areas designated for residential use, commercial use, or mixed-use development. While the term remains common in planning discourse, more detailed labels of land use are often used in accompanying plan texts to specify exact permissible activities and building standards.

See also: Maankäyttö- ja rakennuslaki, yleiskaava, asemakaava, kaavamuutos, tontti.