Loimaa – A vibrant city surrounded by nature, a centre of international technology industry, an oasis of sport and culture.

Loimaa, with a population of around 15 500, is a vibrant rural town of a size suitable for comfortable living. Its location, transport links and accessibility in the growth triangle of Southern Finland are major strengths. Production and housing costs are also below average. Loimaa is surrounded by fields and forests, with rivers and riversides, offering good opportunities for living, recreation and relaxation, as well as for sports, fishing and hunting.

Loimaa has nearly 1 500 companies and around 6 500 jobs in various manufacturing sectors. The diverse business and industrial structure and local technological expertise also offer opportunities for new businesses and industries. Mechanical engineering and metals, trade and services are the most important sectors. Loimaa is also a major producer of clean, domestic food.

In Loimaa, clubs, associations and companies offer a wide range of opportunities for sports activities in high-quality facilities. Loimaa’s successful league teams draw almost the entire community of the small town into the excitement of the game. For the culture-hungry, there are a variety of leisure activities, from concerts to exhibitions and theatre, as well as museums to visit.

Tourist attractions include the Finnish Agricultural Museum Sarka, Alastaro Circuit, Harjureitti Ridge Route, Alpo Jaakola Statue Park and Alastaro Golf.

The city’s species are the European hare, the gray partridge (bird), the dragonwort (plant), the Loimaa birch (tree), the mazarine blue (butterfly), the funnel chantarelle (mushroom) and the asp (fish).

Loimaa in numbers
Loimaa Trade House was founded in 1921
Kauppala became a town in 1969
Total area 851,93 km², of which 3,81 km² is water area
Population 15 423 (31.12.2023)
Population 8 107 (2017)
Number of families 4 346 (2017)
Number of enterprises approx. 1450 (1/2020)

History of Loimaa

Loimaa is an old mother town with a history dating back to the Middle Ages, and the first written records date back to the 15th century. Old Loimaa was a strong agricultural town, where life was concentrated in villages in the river valleys and where the main source of livelihood was the fields cultivated on the river banks.

Completed in 1876 Turku-Toijala railway marked a major change for the region. To Loimaa three railway stations were established in the villages of Vesikoski, Ypäjä and Mellilä. The railway brought new economic activity, and around the station areas completely new settlements began to grow up around the stations. In the early 1900s, the Vesikoski around the railway station became the Loimaa trading centre and the Loimaa and later Loimaa town centre.

Municipal self-government was implemented in Loimaa in 1869, when the municipalities of Loimaa, Alastaro and Metsämaa were formed from the parent municipality. Mellilä became independent in 1916 and in 1921 the area around the Vesikoski railway station became an independent Loimaa trading district. Kauppala, in turn, was granted municipal rights in 1969.

The municipality of Metsämaa was merged with the rural municipality of Loimaa in 1976, and the city of Loimaa and the municipality of Loimaa were merged on 1 January 2005, creating the city of Loimaa. Alastaro and Mellilä were merged into Loimaa town from the beginning of 2009. During the 20th century, the agricultural town has developed into a modern regional town with a diverse economic structure.