Military Assets as Public Spaces Integrated Action Plan on the Re-Use of Ex-Military Assets in the City of Serres Serres, May 2018 Contents Chapter 1: Assessment ...................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 General info ............................................................................................................................................. 4 1.1.1 Location, history, key demographics, infrastructure, economy and employment ........................... 4 1.1.2 Planning, land uses and cultural assets in the city ........................................................................... 8 1.2 Vision of Serres ...................................................................................................................................... 11 1.3 The military camps in Serres .................................................................................................................. 12 1.3.1 Project Area 1: Papalouka former military camp ............................................................................ 14 1.3.2 Project area 2: Emmanouil Papa former military camp.................................................................. 18 1.3.3 The Legislative Framework ............................................................................................................. 21 1.3.4 The particularities of the military assets in Serres .......................................................................... 22 1.3.5 How the re-placement of the camps leads to the re-branding of Serres ....................................... 23 1.3.6 Collaborating with neighboring municipalities to establish joint promotional and tourist strategies and activities ............................................................................................................................................ 26 Chapter 2: SWOT Analysis................................................................................................................................ 28 2.2 Economic SWOT Analysis ....................................................................................................................... 29 2.3 Social SWOT Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 30 2.4 Demographic SWOT Analysis ................................................................................................................. 31 2.5 Environmental SWOT Analysis ............................................................................................................... 32 2.6 Climate Change SWOT Analysis ............................................................................................................. 34 2.7 Contribution of MAPS on the issues identified in the SWOT Analysis ................................................... 35 2.8 Methodology ......................................................................................................................................... 36 Chapter 3: Actions – Breathing new Life to the former military assets in the city ...........................................47 3.1 Hard and soft, indoors and outdoors, temporary and permanent actions .............................................47 3.3 Actions concerning the buildings........................................................................................................... 52 Chapter 4: Stakeholders and Governance ....................................................................................................... 54 4.1 Stakeholders in general ......................................................................................................................... 54 4.2 Stakeholders environment ..................................................................................................................... 54 4.3 Governance model ................................................................................................................................ 54 2 4.4 Post MAPS era.........................................................................................................................................57 4.5 Communication plan (IAP) ......................................................................................................................57 Chapter 5: Financial Resources ........................................................................................................................ 65 5.1 Relevant Operational Programs ............................................................................................................. 65 5.2 Territorial cooperation Programs ........................................................................................................... 65 5.3 Other European Financing Sources ....................................................................................................... 66 5.4 Private funds .......................................................................................................................................... 67 5.5 Sponsors ................................................................................................................................................ 67 5.6 Crowdfunding ........................................................................................................................................ 67 Chapter 6: Monitoring and Evaluation of Actions ........................................................................................... 69 6.1 Indicators, evaluation and results .......................................................................................................... 69 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................................... 71 Instead of Epilogue - Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................72 3 Chapter 1: Assessment 1.1 General info MAPS is one of the Action Planning Networks funded by the European URBACT III Program that aims at the valorization of the former military heritage as a key element for sustainable urban development, providing solutions in a number of developmental, urban and social issues. The purpose of the program is to transfer know-how and to share experiences on the rehabilitation and viable management of abandoned military areas in the urban area. One of the main principles of the program is the activation of the local community and its participation in decision-making. To this end, each partner of the network set up an Urbact Local Group (ULG) where it gathers local actors involved in the reintegration and sustainable management of abandoned camps. Through the cooperation of the ULG members and the exchange of experience at an international level - with the other partners of the network - an integrated Action Plan (IAP) was designed which hopes to promote practical and feasible solutions to the former military heritage but also to claim chances of funding. 1.1.1 Location, history, key demographics, infrastructure, economy and employment Serres is a lively city in Northern Greece, some 24 kilometers northeast of River Strymon and 69 km north- east of Thessaloniki, close to the border with Bulgaria. It is the seat of the municipality with the same name and it is also the capital of the homonymous Prefecture and Regional Unit. The City of Serres Geographic location of Serres Human settlements in the place of the modern city date back to the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC and the land was uninterruptedly populated ever since. The roman era city, Sirra or Sirraion polis knew some prosperity, while during Byzantine times it was an important fortress to guard against invaders from the North. The city met with its first period of occupation, by the Bulgarians, after the 4th Crusade and fell to the Ottomans in 1383. It became the focus of anti-Ottoman unrest in the Uprising of 1903, was captured by the Bulgarians during the first Balkan War, while the Greek Army first entered the city in 1913, during the 4 second Balkan War and the land remains Greek territory ever since. It is worth noting that it is the homeland of many noted Greeks, including Konstantinos Karamanlis a prominent politician, who served as prime minister and president. The city of Serres has known many masters over the course of history, each of whom has left their mark, be it physical or cultural. The city of Serres largely coincides with the Municipal Unit of Serres and had a population of 60,642 according to the 2011 census, while its population grew by more than 17% from 1991 until 2011. It occupies an area of 600 square kilometers and is located on a fertile plain at an elevation of about 70 meters, The aging index, which is the percentage of population over 65 compared to children under 14, was at 1,10, the dependence index, the percentage of people who are economically depended on other individuals for a number of reasons, was 0,49, while the replacement index, which compares those who are about to enter the workforce to those who are about to retire from it, fares a respectable 1,15 (values over 1 mean that more are about to enter then those leaving). However, it must be noted that neither the aging nor the dependence indexes approximate their optimal values. With respect to their level of education: 29.87% have finished or dropped