A historic district or heritage district is a section of a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
which contains
older buildings considered valuable for
historical or
architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from certain types of
development
Development or developing may refer to:
Arts
*Development hell, when a project is stuck in development
*Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting
*Development (music), the process thematic material is reshaped
* Photograph ...
.
Historic districts may or may not also be the
center of the city. They may be coterminous with the
commercial district
A commercial district or commercial zone is any part of a city or town in which the primary land use is Commerce, commercial activities (Retailing, shops, offices, Theater (structure), theaters, restaurants and so on), as opposed to a residential ...
,
administrative district
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
, or
arts district, or separate from all of these. Historical districts are often parts of a larger urban setting, but they can also be parts or all of small towns, or a rural areas with historic agriculture-related properties, or even a physically disconnected series of related structures throughout the region.
Much criticism
has arisen of historic districts and the effect protective zoning and historic designation status laws have on the housing supply.
When an area of a city is designated as part of a 'historic district', new housing development is artificially restricted
and the supply of new housing permanently capped
in area so designated as 'historic'. Critics of historic districts argue that while these districts may offer an aesthetic or visually pleasing benefit, they increase inequality by restricting access to new and affordable housing for lower and middle class tenants and potential home owners.
Canada
In
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, such districts are called "heritage conservation districts" or "heritage conservation areas" (known as "arrondissements historiques", "secteurs de conservation du patrimoine" or "districts de conservation du patrimoine" in
French) and are governed by
provincial legislation.
Taiwan
In
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
, the protects certain historic districts under the "groups of buildings" category. Districts are overseen by their respective municipality, city, or county governments, but can also be promoted to a "significant" status and overseen by the
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to:
*Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania)
* Ministry of Culture (Algeria)
*Ministry of Culture (Argentina)
*Minister for the Arts (Australia)
*Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)
* Ministry of ...
directly.
As of July 2021, there are twenty protected districts, one of which is deemed "significant".
The term "old street" refers to a neighborhood with historic buildings. Many of these are tourist attractions and filled with
hawkers catering to visitors.
United States
Many jurisdictions within the United States have specific legislation identifying and giving protection to designated historic districts.
Criticism of historic districts in Chicago
and elsewhere in the United States is primarily based on arguments that such laws creating such districts restrict the supply of affordable housing, and thus the end result of such districts is that of enforcing caste structures and class divisions by region and segments of urban areas.
United Kingdom
The term "Historic District" is not used in the United Kingdom. The equivalent urban areas are known as
Conservation Areas
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
.
Iran
Iranian Heritage and Tourism organization has nominated and selected several cities for their valuable historical monuments and districts. ''Baft-e Tarikhi'' (In Persian: بافت تاریخی or historical texture) is the name such areas are labelled with.
Naein,
Isfahan
Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...
and
Yazd
Yazd ( fa, یزد ), formerly also known as Yezd, is the capital of Yazd Province, Iran. The city is located southeast of Isfahan. At the 2016 census, the population was 1,138,533. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is recognized as a Wor ...
are examples of Iranian cities with historic districts.
See also
*
Central Business District
A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...
*
Crony capitalism
Crony capitalism, sometimes called cronyism, is an economic system in which businesses thrive not as a result of free enterprise, but rather as a return on money amassed through collusion between a business class and the political class. This i ...
*
Downtown
*
Historic districts in the United States
Historic districts in the United States are designated historic districts recognizing a group of buildings, Property, properties, or sites by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, ...
*
Historic overlay district A historic overlay district is a layer of local planning regulation in the United States which incorporates the restrictions of the underlying zoning for a given geographic area, with the main goal of preserving the historic character of the neighb ...
*
Historic preservation
Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...
*
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
*
NIMBY
NIMBY (or nimby), an acronym for the phrase "not in my back yard", is a characterization of opposition by residents to proposed developments in their local area, as well as support for strict land use regulations. It carries the connotation that ...
*
Old City (disambiguation)
*
Old town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
*
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
References
External links
{{Authority control