In Tallinn’s historic Krulli district, where industrial heritage meets new development, an unexpected landscape invites visitors off the beaten path. Rather than paved walkways and manicured lawns, Krulli Park offers an immersive forest-like experience — a raised wooden platform winding between mature trees, creating the feeling of a boardwalk in the woods. This isn’t your typical urban park. It’s a blueprint for how cities can support biodiversity, reduce stress, and encourage new ways of using outdoor public space.
LOOVMAASTIK
2025
THERMORY BENCHMARK THERMO-ASH
ESTONIA
Rather than clearing space for a conventional park, the design team embraced the site’s most prominent natural asset: its mature trees.
“The most valuable part of this site was the existing large trees,” says the project’s lead landscape architect Toomas Põld. “We designed everything around preserving them.” To that end, the park is structured around a raised wooden platform, allowing visitors to move freely through the tree canopy without disturbing the roots below. Installed on screw piles, the Thermory thermo-ash terrace eliminates the need for excavation, preserving the delicate ecosystem beneath.
“The idea was to create the feeling of a forest hiking trail,” the architect explains. “Somewhere you can escape city stress, even for just a moment.”
One of the project’s key goals, set by the client, was to promote the use of outdoor space for work — a growing trend in modern office environments. The result? A variety of seating options: turning chairs, open and enclosed pavilions, and large tables designed for group meetings. The space invites both quiet solo work and collaboration.
“The proposed vision was bold — even ambitious. But it was also incredibly inspiring,” the architect says. “They didn’t settle for something standard. They wanted something unique in the Estonian and Baltic context, and they made no compromises.”
Beneath the preserved trees, the team planted multi-layered native vegetation — all of which has now taken root beautifully. The result is a richly varied landscape that encourages biodiversity, replacing the previous lawn-and-trees monotony with shrubs, perennials, and flowering plants.
Rainwater plays a starring role too. The park integrates natural stormwater infiltration systems like rain gardens and low-lying collection zones, which promote both sustainability and visual interest. In summer, the large canopy trees help mitigate urban heat island effects, offering cooling shade during hot weather — a quality that’s only growing in importance for cities.
A key material choice in the project was Thermory thermally modified ash, selected for its durability and low maintenance.
“The natural greying of the wood is intentional,” says the architect. “We wanted a material that blends in with the natural surroundings and doesn’t require regular upkeep.” The screw-pile foundation and modular design allow the platform to adjust to the terrain, protecting roots and adapting to seasonal changes.
The use of wood — instead of concrete or steel — also contributes to the park’s tactile, calming atmosphere. It creates warmth and softness underfoot, reinforcing the sense of being in a forest, not a city plaza.
Krulli Park reflects several key trends that are shaping the future of urban landscape architecture — both in Estonia and more broadly.
“One of the main trends today is increasing biodiversity in terms of both flora and fauna in urban greenery,” the architect explains. “There is also a growing emphasis on environmentally responsible design — minimizing interference with the natural landscape so that people can experience nature in as many ways as possible.”
This approach isn’t just about sustainability, it’s about improving urban quality of life. “Especially in the urban environment, this helps reduce stress and, more broadly, makes outdoor spaces feel more welcoming.”
The architects also note that circular design thinking is becoming more central in new developments: “There’s increasing focus on the reuse of demolition and construction waste. The natural infiltration of stormwater, for example through rain gardens, and smart reuse of water in playgrounds or irrigation systems is also a hot topic.”
As Krulli Park shows, landscape architecture today is not just about beautifying a space — it’s about working with natural systems, enhancing ecological value, and offering people a richer, more restorative relationship with the outdoors.
Krulli Park is more than a pleasant green space — it’s a model for sustainable, thoughtful urban design. By respecting the natural character of the site and responding to real human needs, it shows what’s possible when landscape architecture and bold vision come together. Krulli Park invites city dwellers to do something rare: step out of the office, into nature and feel as if they’ve found a forest trail, just around the corner.
Project team: Mirjam Kuuskme, Khaled Mohamed, Alvin Kanarbik, Toomas Põld
Exterior lighting: OÜ KEHA3
Outdoor furniture: Extery OÜ
Signing: Refleks OÜ
Customer: Invego OÜ
Builder: OÜ Nobe
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