Protection or prevention - Conservation policy and planning instruments for adaptation of historically built areas in central Europe

Abstract

Historically built areas (HBA) are often seen as an attraction or authentic core of many European cities and towns. Yet their conservation and protection are guided and dictated by laws and instruments which vary in their flexibility and adaptation ability across central European nations. In the paper at hand, the project BhENEFIT is used to assess national level governance systems. First, it is determined whether or not the systems are comparable. The paper continues by determining to what extent the national governance system take historic building stock into account during planning processes. Lastly it determines that stakeholders are a central part of all national governance structures regarding the use of historic building stock for sustainable tourism purposes. To address current short-comings, the development of a clear local strategy for the integration of energy efficiency and tourism into the heritage conservation is recommended.