Presentation at 4th Heritage Forum of Central Europe Krakow 1 -2 June 2017 Reconciling urban heritage with Suomenlinna Sea Fortress the needs of urban communities Helsinki, Finland Dr. John Ebejer Institute for Tourism, Travel and Culture University of Malta john.ebejer@um.edu.mt Fort St. Elmo Valletta, Malta
Suomenlinna Sea Fortress Suomenlinna part of presentation is researched from various sources including : Governing Body of Suomenlinna (2000) Suomenlinna: Conservation ad Reuse Governing Body of Suomenlinna (2012) AT FORT Self-Analysis report
Photo source: Governing Body of Suomenlinna (2000) Suomenlinna: Conservation ad Reuse
Suomenlinna – this presentation • Physical preservation of the monument • Local community • Place of work • Tourism, recreation and culture • A diverse landscape • Management and funding
Physical preservation of the monument • Lines of fortifications • Various buildings spread out on the landscape
Physical preservation of the monument • Lines of fortifications
Physical preservation of the monument • Various buildings
Local community • Home to 900 permanent residents • Both a museum and a living part of the city • Objective : increase of permanent population • Ongoing programme of conversion of historic buildings mostly to residential use • Ongoing renovation of residential units
Residents are provided with basic municipal services including transport connection, the school and the day care centre. Other services available on the main island include a church, food shop, a sports hall, a library, a public beach and a sport field. Health services are only available on the mainland although a service tunnel allows for the passage of emergency vehicles.
Place of work
Tourism, recreation and culture Photos in this slide sourced from: Governing Body of Suomenlinna (2000) Suomenlinna: Conservation ad Reuse
Tourism, recreation and culture • First took visitors in the 1930s • Tourism and recreation facilities developed progressively over the years • Suomenlinna Visitor Centre opened in 1998 with range of tourism facilities. • Another five museums open only in summer • Facilities for conferences and functions • 700,000 visitors annually. • two major visitor groups: Helsinki residents who spend leisure time there tourists who come to see the fortress
Suomenlinna visitor centre Photos in this slide sourced from: Governing Body of Suomenlinna (2000) Suomenlinna: Conservation ad Reuse
A diverse landscape
Management and funding • Single agency responsible • Suomenlinna Governing Body established in the 1970s • SGB led by a Board with representatives of government and city agencies + two elected resident representatives • Masterplan in 1974 with a 20 year programme of works • Allocated an annual budget for repairs maintenance and restoration (12 million euros in 2011) • Generates its own income through rental of residential units and of other buildings and facilities including tourism related facilities • SGB strives to increase visitor numbers to increase income.
Suomenlinna Sea Fortress - Lessons learnt • A historic monument cannot be seen in isolation from its context, namely the landscape and the human activity • Having a resident community creates vitality and makes the monument more interesting • Tourism and recreation provides good opportunities to generate income to sustain the maintenance and upkeep of the monument • Having a single agency responsible ensures a coordinated approach • A long term vision is essential
Fort St. Elmo project Museum and ramparts walk
Source: Spiteri, Stephen (2001) Fortresses of the Knights General view of the Fort St. Elmo fortification system: The site consists of a large number of relatively small buildings within the fort and outside it, as well as numerous open spaces.
A. Fort St. Elmo B B. Seaward bastions surrounding Fort St. Elmo C B C. Lower St. Elmo A B The Fort St. Elmo project consisted of A and B. C was not included.
The forecourt to Porta del Soccorso
The central parade ground of Fort St. Elmo
The space between a barrack block and a cavalier
The site (1) Fort St. Elmo is at the tip of Valletta, strategically located to guard entrance into both the Grand Harbour and Marsamxett harbour. The historic significance of the site is immense. Its history is closely linked with that of Valletta and of Malta. It features in the two most significant events in Malta’s history; the Great Siege in 1565 and Siege of Malta from 1940-1943 during World War II.
The site (2) • Exposed to the elements. • Numerous small buildings with relatively small internal spaces. • Buildings spread out over a large area, resulting in many open spaces. • All buildings and structure are in need of restoration, some more than others.
Constraints • Very large site and hence high cost of restoration • Substantial internal spaces, but fragmented in many buildings • Inadvisable to alter historic structure or add new buildings, because of planning constraints and costs
Opportunities • Exceptional views of both the Grand Harbour and Marsamxett Harbours. • Arguably the most important historic site in Malta • Includes narratives of two exceptional events in Malta’s and Europe’s history • Within walking distance to Valletta tourism sites • Within walking distance to urban residential areas • Open spaces with unique heritage backdrop
Project objectives • To restore and bring back to life historic buildings and structures and to do so in a manner which is financially sustainable. • To convert what was previously a war machine into a machine for tourism, leisure, education and the appreciation of heritage. • To enhance Malta’s attractiveness as a tourism destination and also to reduce seasonality.
The project It was decided to have two primary uses for the site namely; • The museum would be focused in the internal spaces of the buildings with different buildings having different themes. • The ramparts walk would make use of the external spaces. This would stretch along the entire length of the bastions that surround the fort. All the site to be managed by Heritage Malta.
Other facilities: • An orientation room • Church for temporary exhibitions and small musical performances. • Chapel for religious services. • Two catering facilities, with external tables and chairs. • Small retail outlets • Tourist information office. • Space for occasional open air market • Public conveniences
Fort St. Elmo project Lessons learnt on developing project concepts for historic sites and buildings 1. Have a single agency responsible for project concept development and implementation. 2. Set up a project team with the involvement of different stakeholders 3. Involve end user in developing the project concept. 4. Be clear early on what you want to achieve with the project 5. Identify a use for the site that is financially viable i.e. that will generate enough income to sustain maintenance 6. Consider carefully transport issues. How will people get to your site? 7. Do not look at the site in isolation. Consider it part of a larger urban area. 8. Public participation at the project concept stage is advisable, if anything to develop a sense of ownership of the community to the project. 9. Be wary of prima-donna architects and of narrow corporate interests.
Thank you for your attention Dr. John Ebejer Institute for Tourism, Travel and Culture University of Malta john.ebejer@um.edu.mt
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