Andrey Ivanov
International pilot project on assessment and mapping of municipal cultural heritage
and development “InterSAVE Russia – Pushkin”: realization and perspectives
In a course of elaboration of number of program and planning works for small and average Russian historic
towns and cities in the Institute on Reconstruction of Historic Towns (INRECON, Moscow) we constantly
meet a great deficiency of information about a heritage (especially a town-planning heritage) and, accordingly, a lack of understanding of its values (both among the “simple” townspeople and among heads of towns
and even among professionals. But in such a situation of mass misunderstanding of a nature of local townplanning heritage and its “superficial” perception distorted by propagation of the Soviet years, the realization
of any environmental initiatives is very problematic1.
However similar period of social apathy and misunderstandings have gone through also those countries,
where active participations of various layers of locals in the heritage conservation already became a norm (in
many cases it fixed legislatively). A radical turn has taken place due to development of a civil society and
purposeful work of the experts assisting to local communities. It is indicative, that even in the countries with
the greatest level of participation the job on heritage education of population, the “environmental” informing
of citizens goes continuously and became more and more active.
“What are the best ways of understanding and recording the historic environment and how can that information best be disseminated to the widest possible audience?”2 – this a question became today one of key
points for conservationists in developed countries. The answer is given during so-called awareness-rising
companies. There are wide educational campaigns for escalating of public understanding of environmental
problems, taking place in the last time with an increasing use of modern information technologies.
There is new, extended, complicated understanding of the heritage corresponding to a complicated reality.
“In the information society, the approach to the heritage is a decisive factor, and is sometimes even more
important than the heritage itself. The heritage is a medium for the collective memory, which is expressed
through a series of mediators …it is the place of transition from «knowledge» to «know-how»”3.
One of such technologies simultaneously aimed towards both preservation of cultural values and social education, is the SAVE system (Survey of Architectural Values in the Environment), developed in Denmark in
the beginning of 1980-s4. Its initial task was a creation of a technique of an operational assessment of an urban built development’s architectural quality with the purposes of local building traditions’ preservation.
Last years, however, this system finds a wide circulation in many European countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia – Kosovo, Estonia, Lithuania) already in wider sense as means of inventory of the endangered heritage, administrative control by development of settlements and acquaintance of public with
values of local environment.
SAVE is an operational and rather inexpensive tool of definition and all-round public explanation of an architectural and environmental value of urban development. The technique provides an express estimation of
buildings’ estate (all buildings of municipality, including architectural monuments, common development,
industrial buildings, etc.), an aggregative account of money necessary for its putting in order, and also a revealing of most important qualities and elements of environment, a preservation of which should become a
subject of public consent. Separate buildings and historical urban fabric as a whole are considered as a part
of regional environment from the point of local building culture’s maintenance and historical heritage’s conservation.
As a result so-called municipal atlas prints, where the basic objects, parameters and values of local environment demanding obligatory preservation are shown in the form understandable for layman. The most important results of work become accessible to the managers, experts, population and potential investors. Thus
system-defined representation of environmental values translates from experts to public, and the general reference point for all persons connected to development of the given territory creates.
The city of Pushkin (the former town of Tsarskoye Selo) became of a first Russian object of implementation
of the SAVE system. The project “InterSAVE Russia: the administrative tool containing atlas and database
on study of architectural values in the urban environment” is now in progress in the Pushkin Administrative
District of St-Petersburg and is aimed onto elaboration of an effective system of “transparent” management
by cultural heritage and urban development as a whole5.
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Within of this pilot project’s framework the binding of the SAVE system to domestic realities, checking of
its compatibility with the procedures of heritage conservation and urban development accepted here is carried out.
Three components are under elaboration:
- the municipal atlas presenting an integrated view on cultural heritage, built and nature environment all
over the municipality;
- the computer database, which covers all buildings of municipality and includes the objective information, evaluation and analytical data, and also digital photos on each building;
- the guideline for a team-work of governmental authorities and private sector on the balanced approach’s
achievement towards conservation of cultural values.
The project should give to people a complex awareness on environmental, historical and cultural values of
locality, drawing attention to a “second-order heritage” (common historic development, etc.). It is especially
important in such a town like Pushkin that is full of first-class architectural monuments.
The technique provides also an aggregative count of the necessary investments in reconstruction of various
buildings types. It is important for planning of state investments in the defined sorts and zones of development and gives a basis for decision making to the private investors at early stages of negotiations with authorities.
Realization of the project: the initial stage
At an initial stage of work in February – June 2001 some important tasks are solved. Russian variant of the
Methodical Guideline on the SAVE system is prepared. It is translation of 3-rd Danish edition of the Guideline6 with short editorial comments.
The preliminary historical, architectural, topographical investigations are carried out, allowed to create documents necessary for a field building’s assessment.
The administrative district’s territory is divided on 12 subdistricts according to naturalistic and historical
borders. The city itself includes 4 subdistricts: Palaces and parks, Tsarskoye Selo (a zone between parks and
boulevards), Sophia (a territory in borders of the plan of the uyezd’ city of Sophia from 1780), New Pushkin
(a zone of development of 1960-s – 1990-s). Each building codifies according to its localization in a certain
subdistrict.
The code list for an assessment of buildings is prepared. It is a register of the basic building parameters, using by the assessors in a course of fieldwork. The assessment of each building is provided on the following
parameters: construction period; architectural style; actual and initial use; construction of walls and roof; materials of socle, walls and roof; types of windows and doors; parts of a building; architectural details; decorative elements; elements of a surrounding. Every block contains from 7 up to 32 various positions. We thinking that such a complex register comprehensively describing building from the architectural, artistic and constructive points of view is executed in Russia for the first time.
The training of assessors “in the field” is carried out with the evident analysis of characteristic buildings. The
criteria both identification of buildings on formal parameters and qualitative expert estimation of various
sides of architectural value of buildings are established.
The translation on Russian of the interface of the program (database in the Microsoft Access) and its design’s
updating are executed.
Numerous organizational problems (arrangement of office, purchase of equipment, reception of the base cartographical information, codification of buildings and streets, etc.) were solved (and continue to be solved) in
a course of work.
At last, the Steering Committee of the project is created. It is public organization including the recognized
experts (town-planners, architects and art critics) from Russia and Denmark and also representatives of authorities of the Pushkin district and the Danish town of Ronne. At the first sessions of Committee in April
and October, 2001 the state of work was reported, discussed and approved.
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Built development’s database
The analysis of built environment within the framework of the SAVE system consists of two basic procedures – an assessment of separate buildings and an assessment of town-planning structures.
In a course of a fieldwork the assessors fill in the identification sheets about each separate building, determine on a place the listed above formal characteristics. The most important part of the description is the
building’s qualitative estimation, which consists of 6 various marks: architectural value (it depends on a level
of proportional and compositional harmony, outstanding work of famous architect etc.); cultural and historical value (known historical events, persons connected to the given building, evidence of achievement of
building skill or technologies, presence of important social functions); environmental value (degree of harmony with environment); originality (degree of authenticity of the saved ex-terrier); value of an establishment (degree of efforts and expenses necessary for putting in order of a building’s external appearance; for
historical buildings a conformity with architectural and restoration criteria must be consider also), and, at
last, as an integrated final estimation – a preservation value of a building. A 9-level scale (“1” is a highest
mark) is used for estimations.
A similar ball scale uses for the visual assessment of a technical estate of a roof, walls, windows and doors.
The digital photographing of each house is also carried out (from 2 till 8-10 photos depending on complexity
and detailed elaboration of object)7.
The brief data on the architects, owners of a building etc. are brought in to the field “Note” (a connection of
this database with the database of KGIOP of St-Petersburg containing more complete information on buildings-monuments will com further).
The results of an assessment are entered in the computer and then are exposed to a lot of consecutive checks
by the assessors’ group lieder and local consultants.
During practical use of a database an automatic creation of the “Building Report” for each building is possible. Such a report includes the post address and codes of a building, number of floors, the construction area
of building (is entered using the official data from the local Project and Inventory Bureau), assessment date,
name of assessor, results of quality estimation, all parameters from the code list, digital photo of a building.
The program provides easy receiving of answers to queries about separate building or development as a
whole by any criteria or any groups of criteria. For example, it is possible to find out, how much buildings of
this or that architectural style there are in Pushkin district or in its certain part and immediately to see their
photo images, or to know how much buildings with the best preservation value have the worst estate of roofing coverings and, hence, require urgent preservation, etc.
The program is accessible for users with minimal computer skills. The database is intended finally for network use in the Administration of Pushkin District.
Now we are at a final stage of realization of this part of the project. The fieldwork with separate buildings
comes to an end. On the October 2001 more than 2500 buildings are assessed. It is necessary to finish check
of the entered information, final debugging of the program interface and the economic block of a database, in
which, on the assumption of provisional average cost of reconstruction of one square meter of the common
building area, will carry out automatically account of the investments necessary for the putting in order of
external architectural appearance of each building or certain set of buildings.
In the future the database’s information escalating is possible (an addition by the cartographical information
etc.). Its complex network use in interrelation with existing and developed now databases of other administrative structures seems very fruitful.
The municipal atlas
The work on the Municipal atlas of the Pushkin District is, on the contrary, in an initial stage (planned term
of the atlas’ edition is May – June 2002). The atlas is devoted to the complex analysis of a cultural heritage
and built environment. In the first part, according to a basic methodical triad of the SAVE “topography –
history – architecture”, basic landscape, architectural and planning feature of area will be described, the brief
review of the historical periods of development of territory will be given. The central part of atlas is devoted
to the analysis of town-planning structures – there are complex integrated elements of environment including
buildings, public urban spaces and landscapes (townscapes). In a number of cases the special attention to the
behaviour and semantic “filling” of structures will be given.
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The town-planning structures, according to the SAVE technique, are differentiated on three groups: dominating features of territory, building patterns and selected elements of environment. The analysis of structures in
the atlas will include the brief text description, scale cartographical circuit with colour differentiation of
buildings on final preservation value (as a result of a field assessment of separate buildings), historical and
modern images etc.
Dominating fitches of territory are its landscape, planning and architectural majorants (dominants), major
space and structural ratios defining character of the environment. Objects of the description in this section
become a unique landscape of the city and suburbs; palaces and parks as a main town-forming factor; a role
of Tsarskoye Selo as a historic roads junction; micro-agglomeration of Tsarskoye Selo – Pavlovsk; Tsarskoye Selo as the Town of the Emperor court department and as the “Town of muses” 8.
Building patterns are most typical sites of urban and village development mirroring methods of organization
of the residential environment and public spaces distributed in the given district. In this section a description
of changing of architectural styles, buildings materials and techniques, an examples of most characteristic
buildings and a brief explanations of the ways, how the building patterns influence (or may influence) towards the style of life of inhabitants will be given also. 9 building patterns for Pushkin district are revealed
previously: development of the Palace outskirts; “military” development of Sophia; ordinary town development of middle 19 – early 20 c.; manors in the gardens; Friedentahl Colony and “dacha” development along
Pavlovskoye and Moskovskoye Shosse; traditional development of historic suburb villages; “stalinistic” development; Development of 1960s – 1980s; “New-Russians” development of the town and suburbs of 1990s.
Selected environmental elements are most remarkable urban spaces, architectural ensembles and complexes,
sites, separate objects, nets of characteristic objects (e.g. gates), representing independent value in comparison with dominating fitches of territory and building patterns. Following items will be the themes of phenomenological description in this section of the atlas: special features of planning, architectural and semantic
organization of the Ecatherininskiy, Alexandrovskiy, Babolovskiy and Otdelniy Parks; boundary of parks
and town (Sadovaya, Parkovaya, Dvortsovaya Streets); Sofiyskiy Cathedral and adjacent square; Lyceum,
Lyceum Garden and “Gardens of Lyceum”; Main Square, Gostiny Dvor and market; Oranzhereynaya Street
as a “main street” of Pushkin; Boulevards; area of the Feodorovskiy Gorodok (neorussian architectural ensembles in the Fermsky Park); Privoksalnaya Square and Railway station; town and park gates; historical
cemeteries; historical roads; canals, sluices and ponds; urban details.
Maps of the town of Pushkin and rest settlements of the district showing of the buildings preservation value
will be place in the last part of atlas together with reference section and brief recommendations for restoration and new construction in the Pushkin district addressed to the inhabitants, managers and investors.
Perfection of municipal management
The special part of the project responsible for introduction of its results will be aimed at an effective use of
the received information in an existing system of territory development. The implementation of the SAVE
system is important for perfection of decision-making process. On the one hand, it becomes transparent (atlas
is public document open for all), on the other hand it accelerates (it is possible to understand quickly what it
is necessary to do with the concrete house, etc.). SAVE enables to understand, what is a historical urban environment as a whole and what elements of it are necessary to protect in the first turn. It is also the way to
further joint work of state and private sectors. The public education on the environmental problematic and
heritage values can ensure common understanding and support of efforts undertaken by the professionals for
conservation of historical environment.
Opportunities of the further project’s development
After formal finishing of the project it is necessary to ensure permanent monitoring of built development.
Current building changes should find adequate reflection in the database. The system of “InterSAVEPushkin” must be integrated with parallel databases developed in various aspects of district’s economy and
with its electronic map.
In the course of the project’s development, ad exemplum of some Danish and Estonian municipalities, a development of the “model” offers on modernization of basic types of buildings, an edition of booklets on most
prominent aspects of renovation (roof reparation, restoration of windows and doors, wall painting, etc.), a
creation of special consulting bureaus, where the inhabitants can receive advices of the experts-restorers are
expedient. The most part of the database’s information can be placed in the Internet.
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All this will help to come nearer to achievement of the SAVE system’s basic initial purpose – “an identification of local buildings in correlation to everyday life in the community, thereby strengthening local identity
in the area” 9.
An open access to the information on urban environment for everybody, who interested by the given settlement (townspeople, tourists, potential investors and sponsors), on the one hand, and a creation of a universal
database on building and the territories, on the other hand, will mean, in our opinion, qualitative breakthrough in the Russian system of the town-planning activity’s organization.
It is represented as a whole, that the SAVE system is in a trend of the most urgent tendencies of heritage
conservation, and its implementation will be important step to the so-called “informed conservation”10.
See: Иванов А.В. Учет особенностей социального восприятия городского центра при разработке Федеральной
целевой программы «Возрождение и развитие Ростова Великого» // Социальное участие при разработке и
реализации региональных программ развития (Теоретические и практические подходы): мат-лы Всеросс. научпракт. конф-ции. М., 2000. – С. 75 – 87.
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2
Clark, Kate. A new philosophy for conservation? // Forward planning: The functions of the heritage in a changing Europe. Results of the specialists consultation. 3-4 February 2000. – Strasbourg, 2000. – P. 23.
3
Therond, Daniel. Why "Forward planning"? // Forward planning: The functions of the heritage in a changing Europe.
Results of the specialists consultation. 3-4 February 2000. – Strasbourg, 2000. – P. 11-12.
See: Иванов А. Новые возможности оценки и сохранения исторической городской среды: система SAVE. – В
кн.: Новые информационные технологии и всемирное культурное наследие в новом тысячелетии: Мат-лы конф.
«EVA'99 Москва» 25 – 29 октября 1999 г. – М.: Центр ПИК, ГТГ, 1999. – С. 4-2-1 – 4-2-6; Иванов А. Датская
методика оценки исторической застройки SAVE: возможности использования в России // Архитектурный
вестник. – 2000. – №2. – С. 10 – 15.
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The project is carried out in the frame of the European Program “Tacis Cross Border Co-operation Small Project Facility” by working collective under the direction of the project coordinator arch..Ch.-H. Vejby (Denmark) and local
consultants arch. A.Ivanov (Moscow) and art critic S.Gorbatenco (St.-Petersburg) in close cooperation with Pushkin
District Administration of St.-Petersburg and representatives of Committees on Historical Monuments Protection
(KGIOP) and Town-Planning and Architecture (KGA) of St.-Petersburg.
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6
SAVE. Kortlaegning og registrering af byers og bygningers bevaringsvaerdi og udarbejdelse af kommuneatlas.
Vejledning. 3 reviderede udgave. – Kobenhavn: Miljo- og Energiministeriet. Skov- og Naturstyrelsen, 1977. – 101 s.
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An architectural assessment of many building of military department, industrial and agricultural functions located on
the Pushkin’ district territory are conducting for the first time.
The taking into account of a “poetic” layer of environment and other attempts of reflection in the atlas of unique “spirit of a place” are an essential addition to the SAVE technique, provoked by specificity of the town of Pushkin and, after
long discussions, approved by our Danish partners. The disclosing and of “symbolical filling” of an urban fabric is important for the decision of one of “supertasks” of the project: an increasing of importance of the “city itself” in a counterbalance to the “garden-and-palaces” component traditionally dominated in an image of Pushkin.
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9
Algreen-Ussing, Gregers. Mapping and Local Identity / Report on the 9th International Planning History Conference.
– Helsinki, 20-24 August 2000.
See: English Heritage acts to bring about ‘informed conservation’ // http://www.ajplus.co.uk/news/news_article - 20
August 2001.
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