There are 2,000 empty apartments in Eskilstuna and the local council wants to demolish them

At the entrance to the E20, a few half-finished houses rise behind rickety fences. The idea was that this should become the new flagship of the industrial town of Eskilstuna to the outside world. Instead, the building has been idle for several years due to a conflict between the developer and the property owner. The question is who will move in when the 200 apartments are finished – there is hardly any housing shortage at the moment.

“I come by here every day and I’m a little sad,” says moderate city councilor Jari Puustinen, who believes the unfinished project has become a symbol of the city’s problems.

The idea was that the houses would be part of an “urban healing project” to remove the Årby district from being placed on the police’s list of areas at risk. A total of around 700 apartments were supposed to be built, but then the recession came and the construction companies pulled the handbrake.

“We sold land, a lot of investors came here and wanted to build, then suddenly it stopped,” says Jari Puustinen.

During the 2000s, Eskilstuna grew by about 800 residents per year, largely due to immigration. The community expected this trend to continue. But now the population has declined for three years in a row.

Jari Puustinen stops by what has been called Sweden’s ugliest parking lot and sighs. There would have been ultra-modern living space here.

– I spoke to a developer who said he won’t build anything here in the next 15 years.

Since 2016, Årby’s population has decreased by almost 700 people and there are now many empty apartments in the area. Terence Fell, a political science lecturer at the University of Mälardalen, has researched vulnerable areas. He sees an important explanation for the development in the fact that rent increases in connection with renovations push out those who earn the least.

– They are driven out of the city because they cannot afford to live anywhere in Eskilstuna and end up in small towns in Sörmland and Västmanland, which has a negative impact on these communities because these people do not contribute to the local economy.

Another reason for the empty apartments is that many of those who can afford to leave the area do so.

– They don’t want to stay because of insecurity, says Terence Fell, pointing out that on hot summer evenings in Årby there can be 20 to 30 squatters.

He assumes that there will be problems attracting residents to the new houses.

– Since Årby is stigmatized, it will probably be difficult to fill the apartments.

Jari Puustinen keeps coming back on the need to strengthen the attractiveness of Eskilstuna. We drive through the city and pass a street kitchen where a man was shot a few days earlier. In 2022, Eskilstuna had the most shootings per capita in the country, but the local council believes that developments are going in the right direction.

– It is clear that this was a setback.

We park in the Brunnsbacken district. Here are a few shabby houses from the million dollar program that belongs to the municipality. Around 50 of the approximately 500 apartments have been renovated, but the renovation costs are enormous. It is unclear whether it will be worthwhile in the long term in a city with so many vacancies.

Last year Jari Puustinen woke up the question of whether the houses should be razed to the ground.

– Should the municipal real estate company invest half a billion in equipping these houses, or should we think about demolishing them? With 2,000 empty apartments in a city, you have overall responsibility, he says.

The result was met with strong criticism from local residents, and in the end the company’s board decided that the houses should remain standing. Amer, who runs a supermarket in the neighborhood, doesn’t want to see any demolitions or renovations. He loves the area as it is.

“This is a sacred place for all immigrants,” he says and laughs.

He emphasizes the low rents The rental agreements in Brunnsbacken are crucial for some residents to make ends meet.

– Politicians do not understand what problems ordinary people have. It’s like big people, they don’t see small.

Jari Puustinen says he understands the residents’ reactions. But in order to increase the city’s attractiveness and attract work commuters, in his opinion, more villas are needed instead of worn-out concrete shacks.

– This was an opportunity to demolish an existing building and build something different for the future. I understand that there are a lot of emotions, but at the same time you have to dare to look up and talk about it.

Do you think you can turn the tables?

– Yes, but it will take some time. If I say anything else, it’s like signing my resignation letter.

Read more:

Vacant apartments put municipalities under pressure: “The decline in population hits hard”

The community in danger of going under: “Nobody cares about us, we don’t exist”