Deputy Mayor Ilkka Porttikivi admires the beauty of old cars and follows the birds of local nature

Lake Näsijärvi and other nature is close. The old-fashioned village spirit is alive and well. These are a few praises that Deputy Mayor Ilkka Porttikivi quickly lists from their home neighbourhood. The born and bred Tampere person has put down roots in Lentävänniemi and calls it paradise.

– At the spring election event, a woman of retirement age came to greet me and said that she remembered me from my childhood over 30 years ago. She had worked at our local store in Lentävänniemi. And of course, I remembered her too.

Nature and the atmosphere are also at the top when Porttikivi thinks about the best aspects of Tampere as a whole. Porttikivi enjoys the relaxed atmosphere of the city and the way things run smoothly in everyday life.

– For someone who hasn’t lived in a city this big it may seem funny, but Tampere is calm and quiet. Helsinki has a much busier atmosphere. Of course, Tampere has changed and developed a lot in recent years.

Representation events teach you new things

As Deputy Mayor, Porttikivi is responsible for urban planning, zoning, construction and sustainable development, for instance. In future years, Porttikivi intends to increasingly highlight the importance of biodiversity.

– The carbon neutrality goal should be approved during this period, and we have good records for this in Tampere's new mayor’s programme. When work is done in a proactive manner, things get done.

Porttikivi describes the work of a deputy mayor as versatile and interesting. The first half of the week is spent in meetings. At the end of the week, I can meet stakeholders and city residents more freely and say yes to various invitations.

The range of events is diverse.

– People are happy when the deputy mayor shows up. There are good discussions, and I get to learn something new. The opening of the watercolour art symposium worried me a bit, as I was way out of my comfort zone. But I ended up enjoying myself and finally spent time to see the exhibition.

Sometimes the working day starts at 8 a.m. and the last meeting or event lasts until 8 p.m.

– Of course, it’s straining, but I have never been one to get stressed. I sleep well at night.

In recent years, I haven’t had the time for my beloved bird watching hobby. Mornings are the best time for bird watching, but waking up at 4 a.m. just does not sit well with the deputy mayor's calendar. However, Porttikivi still follows the development of the bird population in their home neighbourhood.

Previously, Porttikivi worked in child welfare and the Prison and Probation Service of Finland. In particular, the latter showed how all people are eventually on the same line.

– In most cases it was not about a person being purely evil. I understood that a chaotic life and the feeling that there is not much to lose can make people commit bad acts.

Cars are a shared interest between father and son

Ilkka Porttikivi has three children. The nearly grown-up boys are 19 and 18 years old, the daughter is the youngest at 11.

– I became a father when I was 25. When I follow my childhood friend who got their children at forty, I am happy with the course of my life. It is good that I got my children when I was young – hopefully, I will also have plenty of energy for possible grandchildren.

There's plenty of car talk with the firstborn. Recently, the father received a small shock after borrowing the car to the offspring. The car came back lowered, the windows tinted and full of musical stuff.

– I definitely don't want to drive a lowered pop machine. I am now trying to get the boy to buy the car for himself, Porttikivi laughs.

Porttikivi admires old beautiful cars as objects.

–  I like what a car looks and feels like, but I don't like to sit in a traffic jam. That's why I usually take the tram to work.

The family lives in a new phase, as the firstborn has just moved away from home. The sadness is counterbalanced by amused relief: the refrigerator no longer gets emptied in a day.

It was surprisingly hard when the boy moved to the east side of the rapid.

– I tried to find him an apartment closer, but they weren’t satisfying for him. I'm sure he will come back west.