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Delineating protective boundaries using the HUL approach a case study: heritage waterways of Isfahan

Elnaz Chitsazzadeh (Department of Urban Development and Architecture, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Mahsa Chizfahm Daneshmandian (Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism, Tabriz Islamic Art University, Tabriz, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Najmeh Jahani (Department of Planning and Designing the Environment, Environmental Sciences Research Institute, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Mohammad Tahsildoost (Department of Construction, Architecture and Urban Development Faculty, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran)

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development

ISSN: 2044-1266

Article publication date: 8 February 2023

72

Abstract

Purpose

The UNESCO recommendation under the historic urban landscapes (HUL) title and Operational Guidelines (OPG) were used to create dynamic protective boundaries to maintain the integrity and authenticity of Isfahan's heritage waterways. Accordingly, by using GIS and Isfahan urban layers, three protective zones were proposed and evaluated; the central zone, the functional zone and the visual zone.

Design/methodology/approach

Heritage waterways in historic cities are not adequately protected against the negative impacts of urban development, and there is a lack of a dynamic protective system to protect their integrity and authenticity. The problem can be observed in Isfahan, a historic Iranian city, where the boundaries of urban heritage waterways (Madi canals) are usually rigid and arbitrary. This study aims to develop a practicable paradigm for determining protection boundaries for Isfahan's Jolfa Madi, an urban heritage waterway.

Findings

Compared to the current protective boundaries, the authors found that proposed protective boundaries create a greater amount of protection space, which makes a strong connection among the ecological, historical and socio-economic characteristics of the urban context. Furthermore, the protective zones based on the HUL approach give Isfahan's urban planning policy the opportunity to consider participatory tools, financial tools and regulatory systems.

Originality/value

Many studies have emphasized a fixed-width buffer or an arbitrary distance from the urban waterway's axis (urban heritage) or its banks. Although these protections include technical conservation or setting restrictions on the adjacent buildings and blocks, studying crucial concepts such as urban dynamic, urban heritage context and producing a particular technique for protected boundaries has not been investigated. In this article three dynamic boundaries are delineated with various functions in order to provide urban heritage with dynamic preservation and sustainable development for the historic urban landscapes.

Keywords

Citation

Chitsazzadeh, E., Chizfahm Daneshmandian, M., Jahani, N. and Tahsildoost, M. (2023), "Delineating protective boundaries using the HUL approach a case study: heritage waterways of Isfahan", Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCHMSD-03-2022-0035

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited

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