- Visions or Projects: urban regeneration strategies in Cottbus and Görlitz (Eastern Germany)    94 kb by    Kühn, Manfred | kuehnm@irs-net.de    Short Outline Many Eastern German cities either carry out long-term visions or short-term strategic projects. Hardly any of them do both. The presentation will reflect some reasons for this gap, referring to the cases of Cottbus and Görlitz. Abstract Strategic urban planning is often seen as a suitable approach for the regeneration of cities in decline. The transformation of former industrial cities into post-industrial, service- or knowledge-based cities requires both, long-term visions for building consensus between main actors and short-term projects for symbolizing the transformation progress. Since 1989 most cities in Eastern Germany have been confronted with shrinkage processes because of deindustrialisation and suburbanisation. In spite of theoretical assumptions, in Eastern Germany strategic urban planning is more an exception than the rule. Many cities either carry out extensive visioning processes or define incremental strategic projects. Scarcely of them do both: combining long-term visions and short-term projects, whole-city-frameworks and area-based interventions. The presentation will reflect some reasons for this gap, referring to the cases of Cottbus and Görlitz. Cottbus (105.000 inhabitants) has lost nearly 20 percent of inhabitants and jobs since 1990. Today the former centre of the Lausitz mining area and energy industry tries to improve its image as a university and park city. Cottbus city planners have managed an extensive visioning process, which was not transmitted into strategic projects. Görlitz (58.000 inhabitants) has lost its former function as a regional centre of culture and economy with the establishment of the border between Germany and Poland. Since 1945 the city has lost a third of its inhabitants. After reunification of Germany and integration of Poland into the EU, the city tries to improve its image as European City Görlitz/Zgorzelec. Urban planners have put their main emphasis on one strategic project: the application for the title “European Capital of Culture 2010”, which was not successful. Today, a clear vision is missing, which could guide the regeneration of the city. Keywords Vison, project, urban regeneration Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2007: Urban Trialogues   Click to open the full paper as pdf document   Click to send an email to the author(s) of this paper