The paradox of urban preservation: balancing permanence and changeability in old Muslim cities

Abstract

Preservation policies, generally based on the intervention of the state, protective regulations, and the freezing of permissible building alterations, often stand in contradiction to the incremental process that generates cities and buildings. Considering the urban dynamics that characterise Muslim cities, including population growth, rural migration, urban poverty, and the informal economy, such preservation policies are becoming increasingly obsolete. This article aims at presenting a compromise approach to urban preservation that is based on a balance between the two opposite, yet complementary terms: permanence and changeability. A classification of urban components into permanent and changeable would enable policymakers to establish action plans for urban preservation according to priorities and the availability of funds, thus helping to ensure urban sustainability.

Keywords:

• preservation
• urban dynamics
• permanence
• changeability
• Muslim cities
• urban morphology

Acknowledgments

Some of the material of this paper was presented at the First International Conference for Urban Heritage in the Islamic Countries, 23–28 May 2010, in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

I would like to thank Laura Garland for editing the present work.

Notes

1. Visit of the author in August 2008.

2. Visit of the author, 22–24 October 2007.

3. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/565

4. Politicians avoid such housing projects, due partly to their short mandates and to the “visual humbleness” of these projects that is often shown as evidence of their achievement. Thus, they rather prefer investing in entirely new projects that could be easily seen by the public and that become landmarks in the new developments.

5. Due to their religious status, people generally refrain from altering or destroying them.