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City Center Revitalization in Europe
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Carlos Jose Lopes Balsas
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Session:
Wednesday, April 19, 2000, 8:45 - 11:30 a.m.
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Author Info
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ABSTRACT
Recent research shows that European countries are actively attempting
to revitalize their city centers. After years of intense suburbanization
movements, authorities are realizing the need to devote attention to their
city center areas. This "re-urbanization" trend is being triggered by a
growing awareness of the dilemmas caused by uncontrolled urban developments
in the outskirts of European cities. The following are some of the major
dilemmas planners find in Europe:
Allowing for new versus declining urban fabric;
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Licensing new regional shopping malls and hypermarkets versus assisting
to decreasing market share of small retail establishments;
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The need to increased mobility versus eliminating congestion, air pollution,
and the loss of amenities and safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.
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In response to these challenges, several authorities have decided to promote
infill housing development, to revitalize historic districts and to sharpen
legislation on the licensing of new large out-of-town retail stores.
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how those revitalization strategies
are being implemented in different Northern, Western and Southern European
countries. I will draw on my own research in Portugal and the UK to show
how collaborative planning is being implemented among governments, business
communities, residents and major service providers to create vital and
viable city center areas. A common strategy is the creation of public-private
partnerships for urban revitalization. Town and city center management
arrangements—equivalent to the US business improvement districts schemes—are
being created to re-direct resources towards the pedestrianization of shopping
precincts, the improvement of streetscapes, the rehabilitation of façades,
the creation of promotional events and marketing campaigns capable of attracting
people back to city centers. The major problem with those partnerships
is a certain reluctance by private sector investors to actively be part
of revitalization schemes—traditionally of the public sector responsibility—and
to voluntarily cooperate with each other to accomplish common benefits.
It is my belief that there is still a great need to share the results
of successful city center revitalization schemes. Only an active debate
and cross-fertilization of best practices can keep city and town centers
livable for the generations to come. My presentation will consist of a
talk and a generous slide show of pictures, drawings, maps and pertinent
written materials capable of fairly illustrating the argument of this study.
Author and Copyright Information
Copyright 2000 By Author
Carlos José Lopes Balsas
Ph.D. Student
Dep. of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA 01003; USA
Ph: 413-545-6628 / Fax: 413-545-1772
Email: balsas@larp.umass.edu