sahutski cultural landscapes montenegro

Bay of Kotor Cultural Landscape Analysis

An impact study on development in the inner bay of the UNESCO World Heritage Site


Definition of the

Landscape

“It is their gathering on the gulf coast, their harmony with the privileged site, their insertion in a town planning of great value, that contributes to the real outstanding value of the nominated property… By the successful harmonization of these cities with the gulf, by the quantity, the quality and the diversity of the monuments and the cultural properties, and especially by the exceptional authentic-ity of their conservation, the nominated property can effectively be considered as unique.”


Definition of the

LandscapeNote- some language is taken from UNESCO documentation

• “The particular special and economic situation of the Boka Korotska led to unique patterns of urbanization and domestication, closely inter-related to the bay’s topography.” The exceptional natural and topographic position has caused a very particular cultural development.

o The region has been inhabited since prehistoric times making it an inhabited natural site.o The bay has been and is continued to be used as a natural deep harbor. o Terraces are an explanation of man using the landscape—a fertile land that provided – making the most of the natural landscape—

combination of manmade thought and natural soilso Beacon and communication linkages of the fortifications around the bay, especially in Perast. No fortification could work without the

linkages and views and the worked as a system rather than discrete fortifications.• One of the few complete holokarstic morphological and hydrographical landscapes in the world.• Portal and Gateway between Mediterranean trade routes and the Balkan region, and also an east and west- cultural trading crossroads.

o Architecture, art, religion• Combination of climates allows for a diversity of flora and marine fauna.• A historically divided region with the Ottomans on the north-side and Venetians to the south, creating culturally disparate and significant

development.


Definition of the

Landscape

• Unique human spatial development.o A set of fortified towns, with rural areas and villas in between, along the coast

The towns are designed for water transportation and economy—fishing and sea merchant. • At places with access to fresh water and access to agricultural products• Examples of a specific early city planning

The villa properties use the tripart design, with Ponta(i) and Mandrać(i) at the water, and a large house and garden complex on land

o Gardens, terraces, and orchards in the green space above the waterfront. Contain the historic churches and historic towns sitesPilgrimage sites built on pre-historic sepulchral sitesHistorically cut off from the water for protection

o Uninhabitable rocky cap

Bay of Kotor Cultural Landscape Analysis SWOT

STRENGTHS Has a cruise ship port at Kotor—deep bay, easy access,

really walkable (only stop between Dobrovnik and Korfu) Speaks its history well- less need for specific interpretation Not overly developed yet—strong areas for infill and

redevelopment Remains a regionally prominent tourist attraction Strategic access—near Russia and Germany- Tivat airport Intact wilderness areas in close proximity- Lovcen National

Park nearby Defining elements are highly visible and legible Continuity of use- port continues to be the source of

economic viability Climate and landscape (particularly terraces) well suited for

a variety of agriculture

WEAKNESSES Susceptibility to development pressure Current method of development could negate the cultural

heritage related value of the bay Lack of knowledge or organization of local residents on

development issues and historic preservation issue Lack of coordination between national and regional

agencies, and municipalities Cannot accommodate modern resort needs—large parking

lots, all inclusive, fast roads—except cruise ships Ineffective building and design parameters and guidelines

(either non-existent or unenforced) No existing regional (bay-wide) regulatory plan No environmental assessment plans No transportation plan Reliance on tourism and imports as sole industry Hygienic failures—sewage, animals

OPPORTUNITIES Lots of space for infill in built up areas- abandoned and

vacant property Unused agricultural spaces Bike touring Use of the bay for water transportation International connection Collaboration between agencies and municipalities—not

authoritative now makes it easier to make rules of the future

Opportunity for increased natural recreation uses in the undeveloped landscape- i.e. Ladder of Catarro

Opportunity for upgrades in transportation network Willing and able work population

THREATS Natural disaster, namely earthquake Threat to the visual integrity of the landscape—

unharmonious developments Economy overly reliant on one industry Transportation’s reliance on oil—cruise ships and cars Environmental hazard—sewage, garbage Lack of transparency in development plans High price of restoring vacant villas and complexes versus

new construction

Bay of Kotor Cultural Landscape Analysis General Threats

•Uncontrolled Horizontal Development

•Uncontrolled Vertical Development

•Transportation and Infrastructure Improvements


Uncontrolled Horizontal

development

Development pressure that sprawls along the coastline, often out of scale, out of context, and ignoring historical patterns of settlement and regionally characteristic architecture.

Definition


Uncontrolled Horizontal

development

Base Case

• Reuse of large scale abandoned buildings.

• Smart growth— Denser growth in currently developed areas

• Historic land use patterns remain—settlement areas interspersed with forested and agrarian land

• Disconnection in development, with areas of linear villa-like growth, fortifiedanddensetowns,andnaturalspace.

• Large scale vacancies on the waterfront• Out of scale hotel developments• Amalgamation of villages and towns

into one urban strip along the water

Best Case


Case Study: Sanatorium

in Stoliv


Case Study: Skaljari & Dobrota

Waterfront


Uncontrolled Vertical

Development

Development pressures that stretch continuously from the water to thegeologicalgrowthboundary,engulfinghistoricuppersettlements.

Definition


Uncontrolled Vertical

Development

Base Case• Clearly differentiated three part

mountain landscape.• Churches and historic upper settlements

are preserved and remain spatially definedinthelandscape.

• Reuse of waterfront villas and their Ponta(i) and Mandrać(i)

• Infillindevolvementareas.

• Fast growing development at town centers consuming agricultural lands and meeting historic upper settlements and churches.

• Remaining areas are sporadically developing at a slower rate and lower height.

• Disconnection of the relationship afforded by proximity to the waterfront

• An overabundance of hardscaping changes the visual integrity of the mid-range, from vegetative to man-made.

• Villas on the water, with their tri-part plan, are often abandoned and decaying, further exacerbating the loss of waterfront usage.

Best Case


Case Study:Modern Luxury

Housing- Muo


Case Study:Upper Bypass

Roads


Transportation & Infrastructure

Improvements

Projects including the proposed Verige Bridge, upper bypass road, widening of the Austro-Hungarian road, and connections from the Speed Coast Highway to the Adriatic-Ionian Highway.

Definition


Base Case

• Reinstitution of water as the primary source of regional transportation via a ferry network• Verige Strait remains open to preserve the passageways, viewpoints and the historic

relevance, namely the separation between the Ottoman and Venetian Empires • Encouragement of pedestrian and bike use of the Austro-Hungarian road, as an alternative toincreasedmotor-vehicletraffic.

• Bridge at the Verige Strait• Upper bypass road from Herceg Novi

to Kotor-Tivat tunnel, including an additional tunnel behind the Kotor Stari Grad.

• Various connector roads criss-crossing the landscape

• Widening of Austro-Hungarian Road, further cutting off the water from settlement

Best Case

Transportation & Infrastructure

Improvements


Case Study: VerigeBridge

page 19 Institute for Urban Design and Regional Planning RWTH Aachen University

Figure 2.1.1: Position of the planned Verige Bridge and the Speed Coast Highway

coast of the Adriatic, aristocratic cities of captains and ship-owners”, leading to the fact that “Kotor and its neighbours were the heart of the region`s creative movement for many centuries”. Under criterion iii it is stated that due to “the successful harmonisation of these cities with the Gulf, by the quantity, the quality and the diversity of the monuments and the cultural properties, and especially by the exceptional authenticity of their conservation, the named property can ef-fectively be considered as unique”. Under criterion iv it is mentioned “that Kotor and Perast are the examples of a most characteristic and authentically preserved small cities town-planning, well adapted to its destination and enhanced by architecture of great quality”.14

This brief overview of the relevant criteria of its “Outstanding Universal Value” clearly shows that one of the main reasons of the Bay of Kotor being listed as World Heritage site are the human cultural activities, which have been leading through centuries, within extraordinary natural settings, to a unique interplay of culture and nature at the site. It is stated even twice (criterion i, criterion iii) that the “harmony” of the towns, respectively the existing building structures, with the surrounding particularities of the natural settings of the Bay are part of its “Outstanding Universal Value”. This unique relationship between culture and nature in the Bay

14 See: 125_1979pdf (Advisory Body Evaluation: Justif ication for Inscription of the Natural and Culture-historical Region of Kotor as World Heritage Site)


Case Study: Bypass &

Connector Roads


TransportationRecommendation


OverallRecommendations

Recommendation 1—As part of the Council of Europe’s European Landscape Convention, whichMontenegrosignedandratifiedin2008and2009,makesurethat all articles are fully accepted and implemented and that adequate regional resources for the Boka Kotorska are provided. Recommendation2—Undergo a Transit StudyoftrafficintheentireBokaKotorskaRegion,understanding the effects on the current transportation network from projected tourism, the Adriatic Highway, current road expansion projects, and general development growth. Also project the changes to transportation with the addition of the highway, tunnel, bypass road, and ferry system.


OverallRecommendations

Recommendation 3—Implement a regional development plan,specificallyincorporatingtherecent plans of Dobrota, Skalijari, and Muo, with all the municipalities to plan one development strategy.

Recommendation 4—Implement an Environmental Impact Study review process for all new development projects, including archeological, environmental, and cultural landscape surveys.

Recommendation 5—Consider either expanding Lovćen National Park or creating a new National Park within the inner bay area to add further protections to the natural landscape.

sahutski cultural landscapes montenegro

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