Special Report - A Sustainable Future for Historic Town Centres of Europe
Edited on
09 October 2017
Read time: 2 minutes
Sustainable building has become the aspiration for European urban development, but what about the thousands of historical buildings at the heart of towns and cities across the Union? They may be symbols of their communities and magnets for tourists but these heritage buildings are also a major challenge for local authorities: they are expensive to heat and renovate, and can be awkward to live in. URBACT’s three-year LINKS project, which ends this year, has brought together nine provincial towns with historic centres to share experiences and ideas about how to safeguard this heritage and help their communities to thrive in the future.
Historic centres can become “museumised”
Many communities have witnessed their historic centres become “museumised” and lose their vitality in recent decades. In a spiral of decline, residents desert the centre and move out to the suburbs in search of cheaper, more comfortable housing that is easily accessible by car. In addition, historic buildings have a big impact on the environment in terms of energy consumption. The challenge is to improve the insulation and energy efficiency of these buildings, thereby making them more attractive places to live in.
Sharing experiences across Europe
The nine partner towns and cities – Anderlecht in Belgium; Kilkenny in Ireland; Brasov in Romania; Freiberg in Germany; Bayonne in France; Almeria in Spain; Veria in Greece; Delft in the Netherlands; and Budrio in Italy – all face common problems, albeit as a result of different circumstances. The Lead Partner is Bayonne, but here we will examine the project’s benefits through the experience of the smallest participant, Budrio, in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy. This fast-growing town of 20,000 people is 20km east of Bologna, but with its own history and identity.
Devastation by earthquakes
In May 2012, the people of Budrio were made dramatically aware of the fragility of their heritage when two earthquakes in nine days devastated the historic centres of towns less than 50km away, as well as killing 27 people. For Budrio’s newly elected mayor, GiulioPierini, it is clear that alongside the restoration of a historic building, action must also be taken to improve the integrity of its construction. “We have continuous monitoring of seismic activity but with a series of measures we could offer a new level of safety,” he said. The mayor hopes that the earthquakes can be the stimulus for discussion when Budrio hosts the last LINKS meeting on October 11-12, 2012.
Revitalising a historic street
Reducing energy consumption by eco-restoration of ancient buildings is a priority in LINKS, an aim shared by Budrio, which has begun an audit of energy consumption in all its public buildings as part of the Sustainable Energy Action Plan, in the framework of the Covenant of Mayors, that will be soon signed with European Commission. But for the LINKS project it has highlighted culture. The town has a strong record of restoring its old buildings, especially, the transformation of a complex of 19th-century water storage towers into a thriving arts centre, in consultation with the public. So for LINKS, Budrio focused on community involvement in revitalising one particular street in its historic centre, via Garibaldi. The street houses the town’s 17th-century theatre as well as a library and four museums. One of these is dedicated to the ocarina, a musical whistle invented here in 1853, which has tens of thousands of devotees in the Far East, bringing international tourists to the town. But despite the street’s wealth of public buildings, according to one of Budrio’s LINKS coordinators, Valentina Ballotta, they are not obvious from outside, and several of its shops had closed. “We wanted to illuminate these public buildings at night and also to revitalise the shopping street,” she said.
A plan involving the whole community
The municipality held meetings with local stakeholders – traders, companies, cultural associations and ordinary citizens – to work out a plan. They included a local company that makes energy-efficient LED lighting systems. When the plan is finally put into action, citizens will feel that they had a say in it. Of course, funding for such projects will be difficult. The municipality has already received a grant from Emilia Romagna’s Regional Energy Plan but it hopes to receive more, both from the region and the European Regional Development Fund. And, in keeping with the URBACT model, it also seeks funding from the private sector.
A big change in decision-making
“LINKS represents a big change for us,” Giulio Pierini said. “Until now, as in all the local councils in Italy, many urban planning decisions were unilateral political or administrative decisions. Today we have chosen to share these decisions with the people involved. The effect is to make everyone responsible for the objectives that we set. That means that everyone can be proud of having been real protagonists in this process of change.”
“Eco-restoration”: a special case for ancient buildings
Budrio’s theatre, which overheats in July and August, urgently needs a climatic retrofit. This and many privately owned historic buildings are subject to the strict regulations of Italy’s cultural heritage conservation body, which can obstruct restoration. In its Local Action Plan the municipality is trying to smooth the process by piloting an information service for those who want to undertake eco-restoration of their buildings. One outcome that Budrio and its LINKS partners would like to see is a review by the European Commission of the rules governing construction and restoration. Eco-regulations insist on modern materials that may not always be sympathetic to the unique character of these heritage buildings. If the framework of these regulations could be more flexible, some towns believe, it could help Europe’s historic centres become the vibrant eco-areas of the future. Building regulations, restoration techniques and funding are all likely to be discussed at the final conference for LINKS, to be held in Brussels on January 9-11, 2013.
Read more:
• LINKS - URBACT Website
Many communities have witnessed their historic centres become “museumised” and lose their vitality in recent decades. In a spiral of decline, residents desert the centre and move out to the suburbs in search of cheaper, more comfortable housing that is easily accessible by car. In addition, historic buildings have a big impact on the environment in terms of energy consumption. The challenge is to improve the insulation and energy efficiency of these buildings, thereby making them more attractive places to live in.
Sharing experiences across Europe
The nine partner towns and cities – Anderlecht in Belgium; Kilkenny in Ireland; Brasov in Romania; Freiberg in Germany; Bayonne in France; Almeria in Spain; Veria in Greece; Delft in the Netherlands; and Budrio in Italy – all face common problems, albeit as a result of different circumstances. The Lead Partner is Bayonne, but here we will examine the project’s benefits through the experience of the smallest participant, Budrio, in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy. This fast-growing town of 20,000 people is 20km east of Bologna, but with its own history and identity.
Devastation by earthquakes
In May 2012, the people of Budrio were made dramatically aware of the fragility of their heritage when two earthquakes in nine days devastated the historic centres of towns less than 50km away, as well as killing 27 people. For Budrio’s newly elected mayor, GiulioPierini, it is clear that alongside the restoration of a historic building, action must also be taken to improve the integrity of its construction. “We have continuous monitoring of seismic activity but with a series of measures we could offer a new level of safety,” he said. The mayor hopes that the earthquakes can be the stimulus for discussion when Budrio hosts the last LINKS meeting on October 11-12, 2012.
Revitalising a historic street
Reducing energy consumption by eco-restoration of ancient buildings is a priority in LINKS, an aim shared by Budrio, which has begun an audit of energy consumption in all its public buildings as part of the Sustainable Energy Action Plan, in the framework of the Covenant of Mayors, that will be soon signed with European Commission. But for the LINKS project it has highlighted culture. The town has a strong record of restoring its old buildings, especially, the transformation of a complex of 19th-century water storage towers into a thriving arts centre, in consultation with the public. So for LINKS, Budrio focused on community involvement in revitalising one particular street in its historic centre, via Garibaldi. The street houses the town’s 17th-century theatre as well as a library and four museums. One of these is dedicated to the ocarina, a musical whistle invented here in 1853, which has tens of thousands of devotees in the Far East, bringing international tourists to the town. But despite the street’s wealth of public buildings, according to one of Budrio’s LINKS coordinators, Valentina Ballotta, they are not obvious from outside, and several of its shops had closed. “We wanted to illuminate these public buildings at night and also to revitalise the shopping street,” she said.
A plan involving the whole community
The municipality held meetings with local stakeholders – traders, companies, cultural associations and ordinary citizens – to work out a plan. They included a local company that makes energy-efficient LED lighting systems. When the plan is finally put into action, citizens will feel that they had a say in it. Of course, funding for such projects will be difficult. The municipality has already received a grant from Emilia Romagna’s Regional Energy Plan but it hopes to receive more, both from the region and the European Regional Development Fund. And, in keeping with the URBACT model, it also seeks funding from the private sector.
A big change in decision-making
“LINKS represents a big change for us,” Giulio Pierini said. “Until now, as in all the local councils in Italy, many urban planning decisions were unilateral political or administrative decisions. Today we have chosen to share these decisions with the people involved. The effect is to make everyone responsible for the objectives that we set. That means that everyone can be proud of having been real protagonists in this process of change.”
“Eco-restoration”: a special case for ancient buildings
Budrio’s theatre, which overheats in July and August, urgently needs a climatic retrofit. This and many privately owned historic buildings are subject to the strict regulations of Italy’s cultural heritage conservation body, which can obstruct restoration. In its Local Action Plan the municipality is trying to smooth the process by piloting an information service for those who want to undertake eco-restoration of their buildings. One outcome that Budrio and its LINKS partners would like to see is a review by the European Commission of the rules governing construction and restoration. Eco-regulations insist on modern materials that may not always be sympathetic to the unique character of these heritage buildings. If the framework of these regulations could be more flexible, some towns believe, it could help Europe’s historic centres become the vibrant eco-areas of the future. Building regulations, restoration techniques and funding are all likely to be discussed at the final conference for LINKS, to be held in Brussels on January 9-11, 2013.
Read more:
• LINKS - URBACT Website
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