Enriching the historic urban environment: the role of new design in evolving historic centers

Ref.: 20
Key theme: 01 Physical integrity of historic urban landscapes
Date of reception: 14/11/2008

AUTHORS (*Main author)

MACDONALD, Susan * (United States of America) - The Getty Conservation Institute
DESCAMPS, Francoise (United States of America) - The Getty Conservation Institute
CODY, Jeff (United States of America) - The Getty Conservation Institute
OSTERGREN, Gail (United States of America) - The Getty Conservation Institute
CHEONG, Caroline (United States of America) - The Getty Conservation Institute

ABSTRACT

The role of design in the evolution of historic urban settlements and cities is a primary concern in many parts of the world today. The Getty Conservation Institute's interest in this issue is informed by its ongoing work in site management, involvement with the Organization of World Heritage Cities, and 25 years of practice in the field. Currently, the GCI is researching the critical conservation challenges in historic urban environments and identifying the most urgent needs in order to effectively direct future efforts.

The GCI's work engages experts and practitioners working with historic cities. It includes an extensive review of applicable literature and a global survey of professionals in this field. Our initial research has shown that specific architectural and development challenges result from the need to accommodate and manage growth and change in the historic urban cityscape. Such problems include changes to a city's skyline, inappropriate scale of development, and insensitive revitalization or rehabilitation of historic neighborhoods or structures, all of which impact and irreversibly damage its heritage values. There is a recognized need for an approach that integrates conservation and development in order to synchronize traditional and contemporary values in and around historic areas. This approach would include tools and guidelines that delineate ethical norms and standards, influence the quality of design in new construction, and facilitate the appropriate adaptation of existing urban fabric. Heritage management is subjective, however there are good practice models to help decisionmakers consistently design and approve quality new work in the historic environment. Given the increasingly important role of the private sector in the development of individual buildings, infrastructure, and the wider urban setting, clear guidance that allows for public consultation is imperative for an open and clear process.

Such tools and guidelines are only successful if they are embedded in the relevant governance system, clarify the roles and responsibilities of the players, and are administered consistently. In order to build these tools, it is important to engage those responsible for development and design to create a shared understanding of the relationship between conservation of the cultural values of the place and contemporary needs of the city.

This approach must be implemented within a city- or region-specific context, taking into account the broader geographic, historic, and cultural evolution. The historic city or urban settlement's character-defining elements, rather than details of architectural styling, must be identified and used as a foundation for the design of contemporary architecture. Additions to the urban fabric should contribute to the historical continuity of the existing cityscape without mimicking historic architecture, creating the built heritage of the future through use of appropriate scale, design quality, and building materials.

This paper presents the GCI's recent research on this subject. It identifies suitable approaches to the problem and explores the roles of various players in the creation of successful, practical, and applicable solutions that would encourage historically sensitive integration of contemporary architecture into historic cities, and ensure appropriate, sustainable conservation and development of lively and livable urban places.

REFERENCES

International Charters: Norms of Quito(1967) ; The Declaration of Amsterdam (1975) ; Recommendation Concerning the Safeguarding and Contemporary Role of Historic Areas (1976) ; Convention for the Protection of the Architectural Heritage of Europe (1985) ; First Brazilian Seminar About the Preservation and Revitalization of Historic Centers (1987) ; Charter for the Conservation of Historic Towns and Urban Areas (1987) ; The Hoi An Declaration on Conservation of Historic Districts of Asia (2003) ; The Seoul Declaration on Tourism in Asia's Historic Towns and Areas (2005) ; Declaration on the Conservation of Historic Urban Landscapes ­ Vienna Memorandum (2005) ; Statement of the Workshop on New Approaches to Urban Conservation held in Jerusalem (2006) ; ICOMOS Declaration on Heritage and the Metropolis in Asia and the Pacific (2007) ; Summary Report of the Regional Conference of Countries of Eastern and Central Europe on "Management and Preservation of Historic Centers of Cities inscribed on the World Heritage List" (2007); Olinda Report of the Regional Conference "Historic Urban Landscapes in the Americas" (2007)

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Organization of World Heritage Cities, Getty Conservation Institute, City of Kazan. Report of the 9th World Congress of World Heritage Cities. June 19-23, 2007. Report of the 9th World Congress of World Heritage Cities. Kazan, Russia

New South Wales Heritage Office, the Royal Australian Institute of Architects NSW Chapter Infill Guidelines Working Party. June 2005. Design in Context: Guidelines for Infill Development in the Historic Context. New South Wales, Australia.

Rojas, Eduardo. 2002. Urban Heritage Conservation and Latin America and the Caribbean: A Task for All Social Actors. In Sustainable Development Department Technical Papers Series. Washington, DC: Inter-American Development Bank.

Rodwell, Dennis; von Oers, Ron. 2007. Summary Report of the Regional Conference of Countries of Eastern and Central Europe on "Management and Preservation of Historic Centers of Cities inscribed on the World Heritage List". Paper read at Management and Preservation of Historic Centers of Cities inscribed on the World Heritage List, at St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.

Roth, Catherine, Council of Europe. Technical Co-operation and Consultancy Programme., Council of Europe. Directorate of Culture and Cultural and Natural Heritage., and Council of Europe. Directorate General IV--Education Culture and Heritage Youth and Sport. 2004. Orientations sur la réhabilitation urbaine. Strasbourg: Editions du Conseil de l'Europe.

Von Oers, Ron. 2007. Towards new international guidelines for the conservation of historic urban landscapes. City & Time 3 (3):34-51.