ECONOMICS UNIQUENESS

256 ■ THE ECONOMICS OF UNIQUENESS
in the historic city core and its social or economic impact on the population.
Spatial analysis provides a preemptive tool for dealing with urban development
issues in historic conservation. (See box 9.2.)
Th e following (fi ctionalized) maps represent the historic center of Uzès in
France. Th is example shows a city with a highly dense area of heritage buildings.
Rental values (map 9.2A) are indicated in green (darker tones = higher values),
evidencing that more moderately priced housing is found in the southeast of
the city.
Map 9.2B indicates the occupancy of buildings in the city (buildings occupied
or not). Although most of the city has a high occupancy rate, there is a concentration
of unoccupied buildings in the southeast area of the city. Map 9.2C
indicates how property prices for housing can be spatially distributed, when
compared to an average value for the city as a whole. Parcels in blue indicate
housing prices lower than the average, and parcels in red indicate housing prices
higher than the average. Again, more moderate housing prices are in the southeast
area. Map 9.2D indicates the state of conservation of heritage buildings.
BOX 9.2
GIS Supports Detailed Analysis and Targeted
Approach to Problem Solving in the Fes-Medina
Morocco, Fes-Medina Rehabilitation Project (Project number 005524)
Total Project Cost: US$27.6 million
Total Loan Amount: US$14 million
Approved: October 1998 – Closed: November 2005
The primary objectives of this World Bank–supported project were to assist
in the conservation and rehabilitation of the Fes-Medina (especially its historic
housing stock) and to use the rehabilitation process to alleviate poverty. In cooperation
with the local Agency for the Rehabilitation of Fes-Medina (ADER-Fès),
the project work built a solid base of information for this effort. Extensive data
on the composition, status, and income of the Fes-Medina’s population and the
actual physical condition of the built environment were integrated into a Geographic
Information System (GIS). This GIS-based information was a signifi cant
factor in project design, because it dispelled earlier assumptions and allowed a
targeted approach to problem solving.
Source: Fes-Medina Rehabilitation Project Appraisal Document and Implementation and
Completion Report.