The Ownership of Heritage Area with the Conservation Management Apporach——Taking Tianzifang and The Rock as Case Studies

◎ 王婥约

The Ownership of Heritage Area with the Conservation Management Apporach
——Taking Tianzifang and The Rock as Case Studies

◎ 王婥约

Introduction：Burra Charter was established in 1979, which becomes the key of government decision-making guidance documents in Australia, Article 2, Conservation and management, 2.4 ‘Places of cultural significance should be safeguarded and not put at risk or left in a vulnerable state’. In Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China established in 2000 by ICOMOS China, Article 39, Historical and cultural city, town, village as a continuation of the contemporary life and production of historical relics, them should not be protected to a fixed point at a time, but manage and regulate their development and changes, and let them blend in modern life to continuously show they inherited the essence of traditional culture and the development of value. The core idea from these two pieces of principles in each Charter shows that different attitude of heritage conservation. Australian focuses on management of conserving heritage area, Chinese pays more attention on the process of conservation while social change. Land tenure plays an important role of conservation process, and as a result affects the conservation management approach for showcase areas in Sydney and Shanghai respectively.

History of The Rocks and Tianzifang

The Rocks as a connection between Sydney’s past and present has been changed because of demand of redevelopment and the improvement of management. The government of NSW became the landlord of The Rocks from 1900. Sydney Harbour Trust and The Rocks Resumption Board was set up to improve living conditions. ‘About 900 properties was bought. As well as the surrounding wharves, bond stores, factories, workshops, offices and 28 pubs, there were also 430 houses and 124 buildings with shops on street level and residences above. Roughly on million pounds, an enormous sum at the time.’ Currently, from the higher level of residential use during 1960s to 1970s, The Rocks turned to be mixed Commercial High Tourism use.

Linong is a typical Shanghaistyle walled village, which contain Shanghai’s Nongtang (lanes in neighborhood) culture and petit bourgeois sentiment. It is ‘a hybrid consisting of the best of European terrace housing with orderly grids of narrow pedestrian lane.’ Therefore, to conserve Linongs is to conserve Shanghai’s early urban culture. Nowadays, Tianzifang is one of the most famous Linongs in Shanghai, China. It is located on French Concession and formed in 1920s, which within the neighborhood of residential form, buildings and factory mixed coexistence of form, and function on a mixture of residential, office, factory, small workshops and other purposes usage. Now, with urban renewal, Tianzifang is transformed by a new communityinitiated rehabilitation. In architecture style, it maintains the typical style which has small courtyard, wing, the building structure with stairs and red brick walls, black wood, stone frame of architectural appearance. While unctionally, most of traditional residential houses and old factories in Tianzifang has been transformed into a community for creative industry and art garden, such as restaurants, arts, and fashion shops. Culturally, it represents Shanghai’s social stability, community cohesion and economic viability for their dwellers.

Structure of Land Tenure in Shanghai and Sydney

Tension of land tenure between residents and the government has affected the conservation management approach in Tianzifang and The Rocks area. The structure of property right is of great significance and valuable to heritage conservation in a market dominated by economy. How to define property right is the most serious problem for Shanghai local government; whilst, from 1900 to 1971, Australian government has always been considering to redevelop the Rocks area in a large scale. However, in 1970s, with Green Ban’s intervention. The Rocks began to be executed with minor development and refurbishment of the buildings. The most recent work in a major program of reveal begun in 2007, SHFA had a number of practical goals including improving disabled access refurbishing the commercial and retail spaces, and creating a new public space. Hence, the rehabilitation of Tianzifang can adopt some SHFA’s strategy to improve its infrastructure.

According to The Property Right Theory in China, the property rights actually a gather of rights rather than a single right. The right to management, the right to ownership for normal dwelling, the right to land use or the right to ownership of heritage can be divided into different domains. By clarified, the ownership of heritage and land belongs to the Government, the other rights of heritage and housing usage are not clearly. ‘In this circumstance, the government monopolized the entire realm of proper rights of heritage and the executive power of government replaces the

property rights of heritage,’ also the government can execute their authority for allocation of housing. Since the purpose is mainly for economic interests, when they acquire executive power, a large number of social recourses (public attitude towards heritage and commercial simulating) are not used to stop heritage damage and inappropriate utilization, but rather to resolve and manage the conflicts among them.

In China, it is difficult to figure out which institutions or group of people should be in charge of land property rights, as well as in the heritage management system. Tianzifang, a group of Lilong is not in any heritage list, it therefore has to improve its value to prevent it be demolished. In 1980s, residents can put their houses into the real estate market. In 1988, Chen yifei, a famous artist, settled his office in the factory in Tianzifang 1998, and established the creative artindustry centre as a typical feature of Tianzifang. Consequently, this artindustry centre became a special site for Shanghai Tourism industry, and the local government help to improve the infrastructure and treated it as a heritage area. So far, The group of Lilong in Tianzifang has been preserved and the ownership of these houses still belongs to inhabitants.

It is like a battle for land tenure of Tianzifang, people fight for their ownership ‘from Bottom to Up.’The market mechanism won the battle. Inhabitants, art-industrial enterprisers, and government became three main driving forces to conserve the group of houses in Tianzifang. In 2005, small enterprisers seek the new characteristics of Tianzifang as business opportunity, they have rented the houses in succession. Inhabitants sold their housing ownership for profit maximum. Old-style houses were preserved as a result of housing market active consistently. Government preserved Tianzifang as Tourism Districts, and professionals interpret the meanings and memories to the public via diverse media. Once Tianzifang has been preserved, who and how to manage this historic area became the key point because The characteristics of the present institution or people of property rights in China have vague definition, government monopoly, and actual absence of regulation. That is, to find a specific arrangement for the property rights of heritage, land property rights, and ownerships is the fundamental problem for Tianzifang’s current situation.

The ownership of The Rocks belongs to the government is the cardinal cause that SHFA has the authority to regulate and legislate the heritage area in The Rocks. The strategy SHFA used is to for enhancing commercial demand and form its unique character, SHFA proposed the retail leasing plan, brand implementation plan, living heritage plan, public domain design plan, and place activation plan, which can preserving, enhancing and promoting the dicers culture, heritage and physical environment of The Rocks. That is, the government has more power than individual to upgrade historic resources management to the strategic lever. Based on a comparative full-fledged legal system, the heritage items in the Rocks are controlled by State Environmental Planning Policy (Major Development) 2005, Sydney Regional Environmental Plan (SREP)- Sydney Harbour Catchment 2005, Sydney Cove Redevelopment Authority (SCRA) Scheme, NSW Heritage Act 1977. Therefore, there are two separate powers to support the conservation of the heritage in The Rocks: SHFA help the commerce in The Rocks remain, while different Planning Policies regulate and preserve the heritage site.

According to experience of managing The Rocks, the effective measures can be government-led governance.The housing policy on The Rocks between 1900 to 1939 deals with the problem of the slums and the problem of affordable housing for lowincome people. SHFA owns and manages The Rocks precincts that it is responsible for 202 leases, 85 license and 200 market stall holders. The purpose of setting SHFA to manage The Rocks is to ‘ensure the activation and profitability of its precincts for the mutual benefit of tenants, visitors and the taxpayers of NSW.’

Who manage the conservation area?

The Rocks Conservation Area is in the Heritage Listing, ‘Heritage Act- S.170 NSW State agency heritage register’ by Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority (SHFA), which means The Rocks Conservation Area is regulated and managed by SHFA because it is a record of the heritage assets owned or managed by SHFA, a NSW government agency. Thus, SHFA has responsibilities under Section 170 of the Heritage Act 1977 and submitted The Rocks Conservation Area to the Heritage Council f NSW for endorsement. With the development of mixed Commercial use, SHFA also adopted The Rocks Heritage Management Plan Volume 1 in April 2010 under the regulation of Sydney Local Environmental Plan 2005 (NSW).

The usefulness of Tianzifang’s transforming process is composed as three periods. Initially, before 1988, the houses and its land property were controlled and managed directly by the government; during the period from 1988 to 2008, the government and imported market resources to do the market-oriented attracting investment and market operation, turned to do indirect management which established Tianzifang Management Committee and policy support for Taizifang conservation. After 2008, the government, the residents, professors who concern Lilong as heritage area, and small enterprises participate management together. From bottom of ownership’s structure, all of these have rights to help improve the management of Tianzifang. On the top of this structure, in 2015, Shanghai Municipal Planning and Land& Resources Administration announced Tianzifang area (HP-028) as one of Shanghai Historical cultural landscape

area. In 2010, It started to be regulated under Shanghai Historical Cultural Landscape and Outstanding Historical Building Protection Regulations. There is no such particular protection or management plan assigned on Tianziafang Area. But, there is a common policy assigned by Local Government, which is Comprehensive measure for the administration of Tianzifang area. it strengthens the management in Tianzifang area and maintain the environmental hygiene and public facilities in good condition.

The Strategy of management and revitalization the areas

The concepts of ‘Land Property’and ‘Ownership’ in Shanghai are extremely different. Government has Land property rights; if people have purchased the apartments or houses, they will have ownership which underlines they have right of dwelling but without any business activities. Therefore, Tianzifang has not proper right to gain financial reward rental until 2005 when the tacit approval of the local government. Until 2009, 402 houses have been rented to 179 shops, 60% of which is for art commodity (included clothes), 25% is for catering, and 15% is for art gallery.

The Rocks Heritage Management Plan is effective to improve the economic situation, until 2016, April 30, the Rocks commercial vacancy rate was 2.2% and retail 1.5% , where attracted 1.41 million people to visited The Rocks between July 2013 and July 2014 (43% Sydneysiders, 35% international tourists, and 23% from other parts of NSW). The role and its methods involve in conservation the group of buildings in Tianzifang and in The Rocks are different, however some part of physical and philosophical of management is the same. They want to preserve the authority of whole area and gain profit by developing commercial activities in heritage area.

There is clearly established that the government of City, district and county within their respective administrative areas of cultural landscape has the protection responsibility, and owners and users of outstanding historical buildings should bear the liability protection in accordance with the provision of the regulation in Shanghai Historical Cultural Landscape and Outstanding Historical Building Protection Regulations, Rule 5. Owning to unclear ownership of the land property, it rule is the most suitable one for Tianzifang’s heritage area. On the other hand, The Rocks is conserved and managed under the guide of The Rocks Heritage Management Plan.

How Land Tenure effected on The Philosophy of Management

Land tenure is always bind with the financial issue. Therefore, ‘operational and capital financial resourcing should be prioritized’ is put forward by SHFA, in The Rocks Heritage Policy 1.4.6. it is clear to find that SHFA will formulate mechanism to revitalize this area and ask stakeholders (including residents and tenants) involve in heritage management. Coincidentally, in Shanghai Protection Regulations Rule 4, the specific financial fund for protecting the area is from four resources (1) the rental return; (2) from the municipal and district finance budget funds; (3) Overseas institutions, individuals and other organizations; (4) Other funds raised in accordance with the law. Compared to The Rocks’ financial mechanism, Chinese seeks an external financial source to support heritage protection. Most ownership of houses in Tianzifangbelong to residents.

Either The Rocks or Tianzihang are real places which reflect lifestyle and resident community, also remain the urban form, built elements and historical connections. ‘Authenticity’ is the thesis of Statement in both The Rocks Heritage Policy and Shanghai Historical Cultural Landscape and Outstanding Historical Building Protection Regulations (used ‘Shanghai Protection Regulations’ below).

In The Rocks Heritage Management Plan, 4.1.4, the principle, ‘The authenticity of The Rocks’ form, built elements, details and historic associations must be retained.’ In order to protect the buildings in Tianzifang from reconstruct, in Shanghai Protection Regulations , No. 16.1, the spacial pattern of Blocks cannot be reconstructed without authorization, included color space pattern and the original facade of buildings. In detail, the management and conservation of The Rocks is planned as a whole, in 4.1.2 (of Heritage Management Plan),‘conservation of The Rocks must extend to the total resource, respecting all identified heritage values and their inter-relationships.’ but, in No.17 of Shanghai Protection Regulations, the scope of historical and cultural areas can be changed within the construction control. Even though, the basic of block pattern in Tianzifang is not changed (see Figure), some level of authority has lost. Furthermore, this phenomenon in Tianzifang is common because the vague ownerships influence the articulation of management policy.

The reality both The Rocks and Tianzifang should confront is that‘a challenge for the Authority’s achievement of heritage objectives is the objective for financial return on its assets.’.The Rocks’ financial issue affected its conservation management approach to improve and develop the social influence on heritage conservation. Compared to The Rocks’ sophisticated management system, the Heritage conservation management in Tianzifang is almost conducted by vernacular power without government regulation, such as inhabitants, small entrepreneurs, and Tianzifang Management Committee.

Public attitudes towards Tianzifang and The Rocks

The attitude towards to preserve The Rocks is more radical. If there is no Green Bans of the 1940s, The Rocks as we know it today would not exits, SHFA recorded in Management Plan, which ‘it was only through the actions of immunity-minded citizens with the support of the Builders Laborers Federation that The Rocks was

saved’. The famous Green Bans declared to halt redevelopment that ‘the scheme destroys the character of this historic area and ignores the position of the people affected’. To preserve the historic buildings of the area, Green Bans showed their determination against invidious treatment for low-income residents. Residents, tenants, workers, visitors, current and former Authority/SCRA staff and representative of government agencies as the key stakeholders are in alignment about the importance of The Rocks as a major historic place during making the Rocks Heritage Management plan. These groups of people regard‘meaning and memories’ are the main reason to revitalize The Rocks. The plan (2010) states:

‘ There is an emphasis on maritime history and the role of The Rocks as a link from Australia to the outside world and from the present to the past.’

In spite of the management of The Rocks is executed by SHFA, ‘suitable opportunities should be provided for interested persons and organizations to be involved in heritage management decisions’, SHFA stated in The Rocks Heritage Management Plan. people as well as Institutions included Australian Heritage Council, the National Trust of Australia (NSW) and City of Sydney Council will be assigned the rights for the contribution to there heritage management of The Rocks.

For preserving Lilong housing in Tianzifang, it is actually a social preservation movement, to preserve the historic architecture by people’s awareness of the cultural and lifestyle of residents living in the old building. Neither Lilong or The Rocks are in World Heritage List, however, the Convent published by UNESCO defined ‘groups of buildings: groups of separate or connected buildings which, because of their architecture, their homogeneity or their place in the landscape, are of outstanding universal value from the point of view of history, art or science.’

【作者单位：悉尼大学（University of Sydney）】