Developing Heritage: Activist Decision-Makers and Reproduced Narratives in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria By Bernadette Baird-Zars B.A. Political Science and Education Swarthmore College, 2006 Submitted to the Department of Urban Studies and Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of ARCHNES MASTER IN CITY PLANNING MASSACHUSES INSTft1JTE OF TECHNOLOGY at the JUN 2 3 2010 MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY LIBRARIES June 2010 C 2010 Bernadette Baird-Zars. All Rights Reserved. The author hereby grants to MIT the permission to reproduce and to distribute publicly paper and electronic copies of the thesis document in whole or in part. Author Department of Urban Studies aknd vAiing ) May 20, 2010 Certified by Professor Annette Kim Department of Urban Studies and Planning Thesis Supervisor Accepted by_ Professor Joseph Ferreira Chair, MCP Committee Department of Urban Studies and Planning Developing Heritage: Activist Decision-Makers and Reproduced Narratives in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria By Bernadette Baird-Zars Submitted to the Department of Urban Studies and Planning on May 20, 2010 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master in City Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ABSTRACT Aleppo's rehabilitation project has received plaudits for its comprehensive pro-resident approach and an active stance to limit gentrification and touristification. As this objective goes against many of the structural and economic interests in the city, the 'illogical' aspects of plans and regulations would be expected to be immediately transgressed. Surprisingly, however, municipal regulation of investments for significant new uses of property is strong, as is the provision of services to neighborhoods with little to no expected returns. Interviews and analysis of project documents demonstrated that these actions are not a passive enforcement of the plan and regulations. Instead, local decision-makers are active, collaborative agents who dynamically re- shape and reinvent the guidelines for implementation. All decisions regarding the regulation of new uses, and especially those not directly traceable to immediate economic interests, were strongly paired in the discourse of the actors with a discussion of a normative vision of the city and specific re-constructions of an ideal past. Aleppo, like other historic cities, arguably represents some of the most powerful lieux de memoire of twenty-first century urbanity. But, while memory and culture have been well- researched as instrumental facades for profit-driven urban projects (as well as in the marketing of spaces for consumption) the methods through which constructed narratives impact decision- making processes is less well-known. This thesis argues that normative narratives of the city are reproduced, amalgamated, and re-imagined by decision-makers and that these narratives play a central role in the decision-making processes to control new investment in the historic center. Thesis Supervisor: Annette Miae Kim Title: Associate Professor of Urban Studies and Planning Thesis Reader: Diane E. Davis Title: Professor of Political Sociology Thesis Reader: Nasser 0. Rabbat Title: Aga Khan Professor of Islamic Architecture To my colleagues and friends in Aleppo To my aunt Bern, who encouraged travel and demanded sharp thinking To my colleagues and friends in Aleppo To all those who have enabled, exijado, and shaja'u my studies ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I have been privileged to have benefitted from the support of individuals, groups, and institutions in the production of this thesis. My advisor, Annette Kim, has generously and graciously given me encouragement, deadlines, challenging questions, and invaluable suggestions to write this thesis over the past semester. My past two years at the Department of Urban Studies and Planning have been fundamentally and wonderfully shaped by the mentorship, advice, and intellectual stimulation of Diane Davis. I have felt especially lucky to have met Nasser Rabbat in the process of writing this thesis. He has consistently offered challenging and generous academic advice, and has, through rigor, renewed my interest in academia. James Wescoat, Hashim Sarkis, Judith Tendler, Tunney Lee, Bishwapriya Sanyal, and Alan Altshuler are among the many other professors who have been especially helpful with their perspectives and encouragement. Andrea Betancourt, Naveen Jawaid have accompanied the production of this thesis from beginning to end, from library carrels to early-morning wake-up calls. Leanne Farrell, Jose Correa Ibarguengoita and Laurie Zapalac are only a few fellow thesis- writers have provided crucial support, inspiration, and reinvigorating critique throughout the writing process. This thesis would not be possible without the support of my colleagues and friends in Syria. In particular, my dear former co-workers, Rasha Arous and Ali Esmaiel made my summer research possible by hosting me in the Shibani office, keeping me inspired with their work, and sharing in the bestfutur in the world, along with Doha Sheikh Hasan, Maalim Abdulrazzak and many others. Abdulla and Taima provided high-quality fieldwork support on the hottest July days in Aleppo, and I wish them the best in their future educational projects. Dania Al-Atrash was an exceptionally generous liaison at the Old City Directorate, and I am grateful to Ammar Ghazal for tolerating yet another researcher walking around the city. Across Aleppo, my interviewees - from residents to real estate agents to film-makers - allowed me access into their lives, thoughts, and city with amazing levels of karam and sabr. From afar, Annette Gangler and Abdelaziz Hallaj volunteered their thoughts and words through fruitful and generous long-distance correspondence Nothing could have happened without Adli Qudsi, Khaldoun Fansa and Thierry Grandien. I thank them for being my first hosts and mentors in Aleppo, and for continually supporting my questions and encouraging my work. Finally, my family- Allen, Belle, Joel, Vivian, Yamen and Yoarlin- has supported me in this project to the utmost: gracias. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT 3 AKNOWLEDGEMENTS 4 ABBREVIATIONS and TERMS 9 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 10 Overview of significance of research Relevance to debates on memory and culture in the city Relevance to debates on plan implementation Hypotheses and initial findings The puzzle of 'illogical' regulation and investment Strand of memory and action regulating new uses Possibilities and limitations for further research Structure of inquiry and outline of chapters Methodology and reflexive positionality CHAPTER II A CITY LIKE ANY OTHER? - HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND REGULATIONS 25 2.1 Past processes and regulations around urban land use in Aleppo 2.2 Public investment and an overview of the 'project' 2.3 Current regulations and legal frameworks 2.4 Current process for formal investment in the old city CHAPTER III CONSTRUCTED PASTS and MEMORY AS AN ACTION- 42 SHAPER 3.1 Theories and analytical lenses of the role of culture and memory in urban projects. 3.2 Temporal and spatial constructed visions of the city 3.3 Amalgamated memories - creating new narratives 3.4 Reproducing and reselling narratives 3.5 Processes of individual 'cognition' CHAPTER IV IMPLEMENTING THE VISION: POLITICS, PEOPLE AND FILTERED COGNITIONS 69 4.1 Politics of public reinvestment as redevelopment 4.2 Decision-making in decentralized authoritarianism 4.3 Turning perceptions into action 4.4 Fitting narratives into the political context 4.5 Enforcing and interpreting plans, and regulations 4.6 Cognition and modifications of plans and regulations 4.7 The cognitive argument CHAPTER VI CONCLUSIONS 114 BIBLIOGRAPHY AND SOURCES REFERENCED 121 APPENDIX I A GEOGRAPHY OF INVESTMENT - initial findings on the real estate 'outcomes' of turnover and appreciation, 1989- 2009. Property market in the old city and the new city-- factors of supply and demand, preferences, physical stock, financing, credit, construction market A market under 'urban renewal' models and their applicability Variation in price between neighborhoods - consolidating stratification, appreciation Inside of neighborhoods - widening of range 'Remainders' - commercial properties and users and usages APPENDIX II ORGANIZATIONAL CHARTS AND INTERRELATIONSHIPS APPENDIX III COUHES DOCUMENTATION APPENDIX IV HOUSING MARKET ADDITIONAL FINDINGS AND STATISTICAL OUTPUTS APPENDIX V PHOTOS OF SOME OF THE UNEXPECTED APPENDIX VI 'RETURNEES' List ofAbbreviations and Terms AA Action Area, demarcated zone for pilot projects AKTC Aga Khan Trust for Culture - Aga Khan Cultural Services-Syria after 2007 D - Plan Development Plan for the Old City of Aleppo DOC Directorate of the Old City - Sub-section of the Municipality EU European Union GIS Geographic Information System GTZ German Technical Cooperation - Gesellschaft fUr Technische Zusammenarbeit (GmbH) HC High Committee (Committee for the Protection of the Old City) NGO Non-governmental Organization the project Project for the Rehabilitation of the Old City of Aleppo souk / Traditional market / markets aswaq TC Technical Committee waqf/ Religious endowment of property, now controlled by state ministry / endowments Awqaf CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION Over the past few decades, memory and culture have been well-established in scholarly literature as increasingly prominent elements of the public discourse on urban projects. In the 'modem' and 'global' city, produced narratives of genealogy and legitimacy have become standard components