In 2003, UNESCO adopted the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to officially recognize the value of non-physical heritage. Previously, established conservation standards focused on physical heritage, namely historic architecture, which generally reflected the values of western societies but did not necessarily accommodate other forms of cultural heritage. The adoption of the Convention signified a shift towards a more inclusive approach. My thesis grounds this international discussion in a locality by examining conservation issues and practices in Vancouver, British Columbia. My thesis contains two key findings: (1) Echoing international criticism of established conservation standards, Vancouver’s heritage conservation policies tend to systemically favour aesthetically significant and structurally robust architecture. As a result, certain histories without existing architecture become obsolete, leaving a selective history in Vancouver’s everyday landscape. (2) At the same time, Vancouver has also hosted a number of community history projects. These recent projects have been able to recover fading memories of this landscape through storytelling, a form of intangible heritage, and to reconnect these histories to the locations where they originated (what Pierre Nora (1989) calls milieux de mémoire). My recommendations include a formal integration of intangible heritage projects with the established heritage conservation program and suggest opportunities to achieve this integration. These recommendations hope to encourage a more inclusive approach that recognizes a place’s history contains diverse, coexisting and overlapping narratives, and acknowledges the parts of this history that may be damaged by forces of gentrification, urban renewal and colonization. By approaching the city’s landscape as a palimpsest, inclusive heritage conservation practice can make Vancouver more than a site of residence with aesthetic character, but a place that owns its past.

In 2003, UNESCO adopted the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to officially recognize the value of non-physical heritage. Previously, established conservation standards focused on physical heritage, namely historic architecture, which generally reflected the values of western societies but did not necessarily accommodate other forms of cultural heritage. The adoption of the Convention signified a shift towards a more inclusive approach. My thesis grounds this international discussion in a locality by examining conservation issues and practices in Vancouver, British Columbia. My thesis contains two key findings: (1) Echoing international criticism of established conservation standards, Vancouver’s heritage conservation policies tend to systemically favour aesthetically significant and structurally robust architecture. As a result, certain histories without existing architecture become obsolete, leaving a selective history in Vancouver’s everyday landscape. (2) At the same time, Vancouver has also hosted a number of community history projects. These recent projects have been able to recover fading memories of this landscape through storytelling, a form of intangible heritage, and to reconnect these histories to the locations where they originated (what Pierre Nora (1989) calls milieux de mémoire). My recommendations include a formal integration of intangible heritage projects with the established heritage conservation program and suggest opportunities to achieve this integration. These recommendations hope to encourage a more inclusive approach that recognizes a place’s history contains diverse, coexisting and overlapping narratives, and acknowledges the parts of this history that may be damaged by forces of gentrification, urban renewal and colonization. By approaching the city’s landscape as a palimpsest, inclusive heritage conservation practice can make Vancouver more than a site of residence with aesthetic character, but a place that owns its past.

In 2003, UNESCO adopted the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to officially recognize the value of non-physical heritage. Previously, established conservation standards focused on physical heritage, namely historic architecture, which generally reflected the values of western societies but did not necessarily accommodate other forms of cultural heritage. The adoption of the Convention signified a shift towards a more inclusive approach. My thesis grounds this international discussion in a locality by examining conservation issues and practices in Vancouver, British Columbia. My thesis contains two key findings: (1) Echoing international criticism of established conservation standards, Vancouver’s heritage conservation policies tend to systemically favour aesthetically significant and structurally robust architecture. As a result, certain histories without existing architecture become obsolete, leaving a selective history in Vancouver’s everyday landscape. (2) At the same time, Vancouver has also hosted a number of community history projects. These recent projects have been able to recover fading memories of this landscape through storytelling, a form of intangible heritage, and to reconnect these histories to the locations where they originated (what Pierre Nora (1989) calls milieux de mémoire). My recommendations include a formal integration of intangible heritage projects with the established heritage conservation program and suggest opportunities to achieve this integration. These recommendations hope to encourage a more inclusive approach that recognizes a place’s history contains diverse, coexisting and overlapping narratives, and acknowledges the parts of this history that may be damaged by forces of gentrification, urban renewal and colonization. By approaching the city’s landscape as a palimpsest, inclusive heritage conservation practice can make Vancouver more than a site of residence with aesthetic character, but a place that owns its past. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

A wide variety of scholars acknowledge heritage planning as a widespread phenomenon. However, to what extent it is widespread is debatable. Also, if heritage planning is an acknowledged widespread phenomenon, what can be learned about it when looking at the rhetoric and the key concepts used in different contexts? This study aims at a cross-contextual investigation. The main aim is to interpret and to discuss rhetoric and underlying ideas used in heritage planning debates across contextual boundaries. The main aim is made workable through a number of methodological choices that curtail the scope of the study. The following main question is the result of these choices; what kinds of arguments, metaphors and figures of thought are similar (context-independent) versus different (context-dependent) in a selection of recent and on-going debates about heritage planning from Malmö and Rotterdam? As part of the methodology, figures of thought – that are expected to be relevant for understanding debates about heritage planning – are treated. This includes figures of thought such as the idea of an “original” and the idea of “progress”. Cases from the cities of Malmö and Rotterdam are chosen to study what similarities and differences come to the fore in heritage planning debates running parallel in time but being situated in different contexts (respectively a Swedish and a Dutch). The debates chosen are about the Kockums Crane and the area of Varvsstaden in Malmö and about the Porters Lodge and the area of RDM in Rotterdam. The analysis shows that the arguments and premises raised, the metaphors used and the underlying figures of thought are to a great extent similar between the cases from Malmö and the cases from Rotterdam. However, the use of arguments, metaphors and figures of thought differs professional groups in-between (“monument curators” versus “planners”) and between debates about single objects (the Kockums Crane and the Porters Lodge) and debates about the development of areas (Varvsstaden and the area of RDM). This study shows that arguments, metaphors and figures of thought effectively are exchanged across national boundaries through professions. More notable however, is that different “language-games” played or kinds of arguments used by monument curators and planners do not seem to conflict with each other at a discursive level. For example, the monument curator’s story-telling metaphors are smoothly turned into the planner’s commodification metaphors. However, at the level of figures of thought a potential conflict may arise between the preservationist idea of the moral duty of stewardship and the idea of commodification of built heritage propagated by an alliance between bureaucracy and economy.

This study seeks to examine how the conversion of grain elevators into housing is an effective method of adaptive reuse. It uses theories and concepts on heritage preservation, downtown revitalization, place theory and environmental sustainability. Based on the literature review, there is a need for change in planning policy and there are both advantages and disadvantages to adaptive reuse. The methodology and data sources include examining and analyzing planning documents, surveys for the public and professionals, and demographic data. Case studies included converted grain elevators located in Australia and Norway and also a case study in Canada for the purpose of future recommendations. These methods answer the research question of how do planning policies and the perspectives of planning professionals and the public affect the process of the adaptive reuse of grain elevators into housing? Subsequent questions include topics such as whether adaptive reuse is an effective approach to downtown revitalization, which policies impede or facilitate the process, how perspectives influence decisions, and how demographics are linked to housing availability. The significance of this study on planning practice is that it helps form policy recommendations to address the needs of the public and help improve the efficiency of adaptive reuse in the planning process. In conclusion, the public and professionals were generally in favour of this type of adaptive reuse but many had concerns about cost and gentrification. Also, more policies need to be created that address adaptive reuse specifically. For the future use of the Toronto case study I recommended that converting the grain elevator into housing is the optimal choice. The limitations of this study include data availability, non-responses for surveys, language barriers, case study locations, and time constraints.

The concept of heritage is full of conflicts and contestations. The UNESCO’s intervention in the form of the “World Heritage Convention” enriches the meaning of heritage but may exacerbate the intrinsic tensions in heritage while expanding its economic significance through tourism. Heritage tourism is an effective means to realize the economic potential of heritage. This is a major reason why developing countries like China apply for UNESCO world heritage designation. However, some stakeholders take more benefits while others bear more costs in the interplay of heritage conservation and tourism. Achievement of a balance among resource conservation, tourism development, and local community well-being is a pressing challenge for planning and management of World Heritage Sites. This research examines the implications of World Heritage designation for conservation of the world heritage and, particularly, for the lives of local people living in and around the site. It is argued that such people often bear the most costs while often being ignored or disadvantaged in terms of benefits. Sustainability of local life is interdependent with sustainability of heritage conservation and tourism. A key goal of heritage planning should be to mitigate heritage contestation and dissonance, and to sustain local people’s livelihoods and enhance their life quality. This would be conducive to the overall sustainability of the heritage resource. Using Mount Taishan, a UNESCO world heritage site in China, as a case study, employing a plan and implementation evaluation approach, and taking a community perspective, this thesis evaluates the plans for the world heritage site and their implementation from three perspectives: resource conservation, visitor experience and local well-being (particularly local involvement in, and benefit from tourism). A mixture of quantitative and qualitative research methods is used and the transferability and applicability of western heritage planning and evaluation methods to China is examined implicitly. It is shown that much attention has been placed on resource conservation on this world heritage site, although the desire for economic returns underpins the conservation. The resource integrity of the heritage mountain has been marred by the construction of several cable cars for tourism. The number of visitors keeps growing. However, visitor experiences are generally positive except for crowding during the high seasons and length of stay has decreased. Local involvement in decision making relating to heritage operations is low. Local involvement in the provision of tourism services is high but uneven, and usually under the organization of the village committees. Faced with land loss, displacement, and livelihood change, villagers are very positive toward and very much dependent on tourism as the major or sole means of making a living. The power-relations that are reflected in the heritage nexus are a key issue. As the most powerful stakeholder, the local government’s intervention produces high efficiency and also inequity. Short-term goals are sought, reflecting the short tenure of officials. Within this context, western heritage planning ideas, including the advocacy of community involvement and public participation, have met many challenges in China, although this could change with socio-political developments in China.

The concept of heritage is full of conflicts and contestations. The UNESCO’s intervention in the form of the “World Heritage Convention” enriches the meaning of heritage but may exacerbate the intrinsic tensions in heritage while expanding its economic significance through tourism. Heritage tourism is an effective means to realize the economic potential of heritage. This is a major reason why developing countries like China apply for UNESCO world heritage designation. However, some stakeholders take more benefits while others bear more costs in the interplay of heritage conservation and tourism. Achievement of a balance among resource conservation, tourism development, and local community well-being is a pressing challenge for planning and management of World Heritage Sites. This research examines the implications of World Heritage designation for conservation of the world heritage and, particularly, for the lives of local people living in and around the site. It is argued that such people often bear the most costs while often being ignored or disadvantaged in terms of benefits. Sustainability of local life is interdependent with sustainability of heritage conservation and tourism. A key goal of heritage planning should be to mitigate heritage contestation and dissonance, and to sustain local people’s livelihoods and enhance their life quality. This would be conducive to the overall sustainability of the heritage resource. Using Mount Taishan, a UNESCO world heritage site in China, as a case study, employing a plan and implementation evaluation approach, and taking a community perspective, this thesis evaluates the plans for the world heritage site and their implementation from three perspectives: resource conservation, visitor experience and local well-being (particularly local involvement in, and benefit from tourism). A mixture of quantitative and qualitative research methods is used and the transferability and applicability of western heritage planning and evaluation methods to China is examined implicitly. It is shown that much attention has been placed on resource conservation on this world heritage site, although the desire for economic returns underpins the conservation. The resource integrity of the heritage mountain has been marred by the construction of several cable cars for tourism. The number of visitors keeps growing. However, visitor experiences are generally positive except for crowding during the high seasons and length of stay has decreased. Local involvement in decision making relating to heritage operations is low. Local involvement in the provision of tourism services is high but uneven, and usually under the organization of the village committees. Faced with land loss, displacement, and livelihood change, villagers are very positive toward and very much dependent on tourism as the major or sole means of making a living. The power-relations that are reflected in the heritage nexus are a key issue. As the most powerful stakeholder, the local government’s intervention produces high efficiency and also inequity. Short-term goals are sought, reflecting the short tenure of officials. Within this context, western heritage planning ideas, including the advocacy of community involvement and public participation, have met many challenges in China, although this could change with socio-political developments in China.

This study seeks to examine how the conversion of grain elevators into housing is an effective method of adaptive reuse. It uses theories and concepts on heritage preservation, downtown revitalization, place theory and environmental sustainability. Based on the literature review, there is a need for change in planning policy and there are both advantages and disadvantages to adaptive reuse. The methodology and data sources include examining and analyzing planning documents, surveys for the public and professionals, and demographic data. Case studies included converted grain elevators located in Australia and Norway and also a case study in Canada for the purpose of future recommendations. These methods answer the research question of how do planning policies and the perspectives of planning professionals and the public affect the process of the adaptive reuse of grain elevators into housing? Subsequent questions include topics such as whether adaptive reuse is an effective approach to downtown revitalization, which policies impede or facilitate the process, how perspectives influence decisions, and how demographics are linked to housing availability. The significance of this study on planning practice is that it helps form policy recommendations to address the needs of the public and help improve the efficiency of adaptive reuse in the planning process. In conclusion, the public and professionals were generally in favour of this type of adaptive reuse but many had concerns about cost and gentrification. Also, more policies need to be created that address adaptive reuse specifically. For the future use of the Toronto case study I recommended that converting the grain elevator into housing is the optimal choice. The limitations of this study include data availability, non-responses for surveys, language barriers, case study locations, and time constraints.

Die Entwicklung und Bewahrung der historischen Städte ist zu einer großen Herausforderung aktueller Stadtentwicklung in Russland geworden. In diesem Prozess kommt der Stadterneuerung von historischen Stadtteilen eine zentrale Bedeutung zu. In der vorliegenden Forschungsarbeit wurden die Übertragungsmöglichkeiten von deutschen Planungs- und Entscheidungsverfahren, Rechtsinstrumenten und Fördermöglichkeiten zum Erhalt und Weiterentwicklung historischer Bausubstanz auf die Situation in Russland diskutiert. Dabei wurden nicht nur einzelne denkmalpflegerische Aspekte, sondern eine Integration von Aspekten der Stadtsanierung, der Stadtentwicklungsplanung, der Stadtbaugeschichte sowie des Planungs- und Denkmalschutzrechts in einer interdisziplinären Arbeitsweise betrachtet. Städtebauliche, rechtliche, administrative und auch kulturwissenschaftliche Aspekte wurden anhand der Städte Dresden und Irkutsk als „Laborsituationen“ untersucht. Geprägt durch den geschichtlichen Verlust von wertvoller Bausubstanz stellte und stellt sich noch immer in beiden Städten die Hauptfrage: Wie können einerseits historische Gebäude und Ensembles, als Träger und Symbol von Stadtgeschichte und kulturellen Werten erhalten, und andererseits neue funktionale Anforderungen auf angemessene Art und Weise bei der Entwicklung der Stadt berücksichtigt werden? Dabei sind die Gründe zum Verlust der historischen Ortsteile in der Geschichte unterschiedlich. In Dresden wurde historische Bausubstanz durch den zweiten Weltkrieg und in Irkutsk werden aktuell die Quartiere durch Modernisierungsdruck zerstört. Die neu erarbeitete wissenschaftliche Grundlage zum weiteren Diskurs stellt eine übersichtliche Gegenüberstellung deutscher und russischer Planungssysteme mit Berücksichtigung von Unterschieden und Gemeinsamkeiten in Bezug auf Begriffe und angewendete Rechts- und Planungsinstrumente zum Erhalt und Weiterentwicklung der historischen Bausubstanz dar. Dabei werden einige Ansätze zur Übertragung der deutschen Methoden auf die Situation in russischen historischen Städten in Bezug auf die Erfassung der historischen Quartiere und für die Erarbeitung von geeigneten Rechts- und Planungsinstrumenten am Beispiel von Irkutsk präsentiert. Sie können als Modelle für andere russische Städte benutzt werden. Wichtiges Ergebnis der Forschungsarbeit ist die Herausarbeitung, Überprüfung und Bestätigung der These, dass in Russland im Vergleich zu Deutschland der städtische Raum an sich nicht als eigenständiges Element des baukulturellen Erbes geschützt wird. Demzufolge wird eine zu geringe Erfassung der großflächigen historischen Territorien wie Ensembles und Stadtquartiere in Bezug auf Plätze, Straßen, Blickbezüge oder Stadtsilhouette durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse der Forschungsarbeit sind auf die wissenschaftlichen und praktischen Arbeitsfelder der Architekten, der Juristen, der Denkmalpfleger und der Kulturwissenschaftler, sowie der kommunalen Gesetzgebung und der Bau- und Planungsbehörden der historischen Städte ausgerichtet. / The development and preservation of historical cities has become a major challenge for the current urban-planning development in Russia. In this process, the urban regeneration of historic districts is of crucial importance. In this research work, the possibilities of transferring German urban-planning tools for historical areas, as well as decision-making procedures, legal instruments and funding possibilities for the preservation and further development of historical urban heritage to the situation in Russia were/are discussed. Not only individual aspects of the preservation of monuments, but also the integration of aspects of urban regeneration, urban development planning, urban history as well as planning and monument protection law were taken into account in an interdisciplinary approach. Urban, legal, administrative and also cultural-scientific aspects were examined as "laboratory situations" using the examples of the cities of Dresden and Irkutsk. Characterized by the historical loss of valuable urban heritage, the main question for both cities was and still is: How can historical buildings and ensembles be preserved, as a bearer and symbol of urban history and cultural values, and on the other hand, appropriate new functional requirements for the modern urban development of the city be fulfilled/taken into consideration? The reasons for the loss of the historical districts in history of the cities are different. In Dresden, historical urban fabric was destroyed by the Second World War and in Irkutsk the quarters are currently being destroyed by modernization. The newly developed scientific thesis for further discourse represents a clear comparison of German and Russian planning systems considering differences and similarities regarding concepts and applied legal and planning instruments for the preservation and further development of historical urban heritage. Various approaches in the practice use of German methods regarding the urban regeneration of historical quarters and the development of appropriate legal and planning instruments, as exemplified by Irkutsk are presented. They can be used as models for other Russian cities. The important result of the research work is the identification, verification and confirmation of the thesis that urban space in Russia is not itself regarded as an independent element of the historical urban heritage deserving preservation as it is in Germany. As a result of this, too few surveys of large-scale historical territories, such as ensembles and city quarters taking into account squares, streets, views, or city skylines are carried out. The results of this research work are orientated towards the scientific and practical fields of work of architects, lawyers, conservationists and cultural scientists as well as municipal legislation and the construction and planning authorities of historical cities. / В диссертационном исследовании проведен анализ немецкого опыта градостроительного регулирования, способствующего сохранению ценной историко-архитектурной градостроительной среды. Сформулированы возможности использования и практической реализации изученных правовых и градостроительных инструментов в исторических городах России. На примере городов Дрездена и Иркутска создана система практических рекомендаций, направленная на оценку, сохранение, развитие и управление ценной историко-архитектурной градостроительной средой. На основе немецкого опыта расширено понятие историко-архитектурной градостроительной среды с классификацией особо ценных пространств и объектов без статуса памятника. Обоснована научная идея, которая ставит в центр всей системы, пространство, как объект, подлежащий охране. / Dans cette thèse est analysée l'expérience de la régulation urbaine allemande, qui permet la préservation du précieux environnement historique et architectural urbain. Ici sont formulés les possibilités d'utilisation et de mise en œuvre pratique, pour les villes russes historiques, des instruments juridiques et urbains étudiés dans cette thèse. Les villes de Dresde et d’Irkoutsk sont pris comme exemples pour la création d’un système pratique visant à l'évaluation, la conservation, le développement et la gestion du précieux environnement urbain historique et architectural. Sur la base de l'expérience allemande, est élargi le concept de l'environnement urbain historique et architectural avec la classification des espaces les plus importants et les bâtiments non-classifiés comme monuments historiques. Comme résultat de l'étude est la mise en place du concept scientifique qui place au centre du système l'espace qui englobe le bâtiment comme un objet à protéger.