Public space in culture-led historic centre transformation projects: Porto case study

Resum

In recent years, the urban competitiveness model has boosted the insight of historic centres as a value-added asset, where the symbolic features related to culture and heritage could be exploited accordingly to the global market aims. This historic centres’ perception epitomizes the general European policy course to knowledge and innovation, where the creative and cultural sectors play a significant role. In this article, we discuss the impact of such competitiveness-oriented policies in public space. Through the uses of culture, tourism and heritage, we focus on the case study of the current urban revitalization project affecting Porto’s most significant heritage areas: its central area and historic centre, classified by UNESCO since 1996 as a World Heritage site.