When discussing chosen examples of the modernization of the old housing substance, the author describes the background and conditions allowing thus the Readers to visualize a scope, nature and effect of the work. Just to illustrate this: housing construction, specific for Goteborg, consists as a rule of three-storeyed buildings, in which only the ground floor is brick while upper floors are in wood. The preservation and maintenance of these buildings, their functional transformations and aquipment with all modern facilities was the task that required the application of modern technical and material means and, in the first place, a reliability of performance. The author could see this kind of modernization work in housing estates in Landal, Kungsladugard and Hag. Quite a specific town for modernization work is also West Berlin, the population of which is getting down. A characteristic feature is a predominance of modernization problems of old housing substance over other problems such as modern construction and communal management. On the other hand, the problem of modernization of flats in old houses in East Berlin draws much attention, which, i.a., finds its reflection in annual and long- -term building plans. The reason is very simple: only 30% of flats in Berlin are in houses built after 1945 and have a satisfactory standard. For the purpose of planning repair and constructional work as well as modernization the fallowing very simple scale of marks has been adopted in G.D.R. to classify a technical condition: very good, good, poor up to liquidation. Modernization work has also been divided into four categories depending on the age of the building. It is planned to develop all kinds of modernization work to a maximum extent, done by users themselves and with the help of house administration and conservation services. According to the author, the examples quoted confirm the rightness of the thesis on the participation of the society in modernization work. However in order to secure a proper execution of the work it is necessary, first and foremost, to create an adequate technical and material base and to have it properly organized. Apart from that, the problem of relations between housing recources and reserves and a scope of a modernization campaign undertaken should also be examined in detail.
The author presents ample reflections which came to his mind while reading "Guide-Lines for the Elaboration of Problems of the Protection of Cultural Values in Plans for Land Development” drawn in October 1981 by the Group of Experts of the Interbranch Commission for the Renewal of Towns and Old-Town Complexes. In the first place he points out that the dominating thought in the text of "Guide-Lines” as well as in the entire conservation and town planning is that the town is mere a set of houses, streets and communal amenities, while a socio-cultural sphere is left out totally. Monuments protection in Poland (and perhaps not only here) covers mainly a sphere of organised campaigns. All operations take place on the followig lines: a specialist — decident — investor — excutor, while the first and at the same time the last link, namely the user and consumer of culture, is forgotten. It is disquieting to think that the phrase in ’’Guide-Lines” ensuring that all districts are ”a social space” is only a courtesy, without any meaning in practice. Some reservations arise also with regard to the content of conservation programmes for urban historic complexes, and in the first place the problem of the zones of conservation practice. It seems improper to consider zone lines separately from conservation programmes. The conservation zone should be regarded as a result of conservation programme and not a main element of administrative decision. The last question to which the author brings attention is the problem of historic and town-planning studies, which should not be an urbanistic instrument but a comprehensive compendium of information on the town history, elaborated according to methods of historic investigation.
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.