This article studies the sensory experiences of and affective responses to the port of Turku, including the new district in its vicinity. The area is undergoing major changes in the 2020s because the port functions will be renewed, and at the same time, a lot of new residential houses are being built around the port. In this article, I delve into what the port and sea mean to local residents. How do they experience it in their everyday lives? How do they remember the past and sense the present? And what are their hopes for the future? The data were gathered via sensory ethnographic go-along interviews with residents and other people who are frequently in the area. This study is part of an ethnographic research project with the aim of studying the socio-material well-being of a new district through the residents’ everyday experiences. I argue that the sensory ethnographic method is key to recognizing the unique character of a place and its elements. Understanding those elements with regard to the area’s renovations is important because of residents’ place identities and their attachments to it.