PRESENTATION OF THE DRAFT: „POLISH ARCHITECTURAL POLICY,
CONCERNING THE QUALITY OF LANDSCAPE, PUBLIC SPACE AND
ARCHITECTURE"
KRZYSZTOF CHWALIBÓG
„Polish Architectural Policy" is a draft of the polish version of document which is supposed to be written by all governments of the EU member countries. It has been formulated by the Polish Council of Architecture and Polish Association of Architects (SARP) and Association of Polish Town Planners (TUP) - all NGO organizations. This document differs from most of the policies of other EU countries because of its very large scope embracing not only strictly "architectural" scale, but problems of public space landscape design and urban and regional planning. It is not built on the idea of promoting polish architectural design, but is rather trying to point all kind of problems endangering the quality of polish landscape and order of space in urban and rural areas.
The diagnosis of dangers on each of described fields is next completed by the defined proposals of actions concerning as well the needed improvements of legislation as educational tasks addressed to the politicians, managers, designers and the public.
List of the conflicts identified in the urban, suburban and rural areas is the following:
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Lack of coherence in the development of central cities;
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Substandard of several newly built housing projects;
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Disordered sprawl of suburban metropolitan areas;
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Dispersion of settlements in rural and recreational regions;
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Disappearance of values of the cultural and natural landscapes;
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Ugliness of the large part of suburban and rural housing;
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Chaotic development of commercial strips along major highways;
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Visual aggression of the public spaces by disordered advertising.
In consequence authors considered necessity of formulating the comprehensive program of improvements in the existing system of space management in Poland. They have proposed important changes on 9 fields crucial for the quality of built environment and landscape.:
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Professional management of space;
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Coherent system of spatial planning;
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Consequent implementation of the sustainable growth requirements;
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Better protection and upgrading of cultural resources of environment;
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Improvement of the natural landscape protection and planning;
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Improvement of the system of public and private procurements in the process of planning and design;
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Development of integrated urban planning projects based on the public-private partnership system;
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Promotion of architectural and environmental education;
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Growth of the role of the NGO organizations and professional bodies in the movement for better environment.
As a result of the conference presenting the draft of Polish Architectural Policy (6 of may 2009) Ministers of Culture and Infrastructure declared their will of continuing elaboration of the document. Now the main task of NGO organizations which have started the work should be monitoring of this process in the name of general public interest.