Urban renewal

Peer Learning: Cultivating Insights for Better Kota Tua

To get the picture, participants were invited to visit Kota Tua on the first day of the workshop, July 31, 2017.

JAKARTA City Hall anticipated insights on 17 to 19 July 2017. In Regional peer-learning and action planning workshop entitled “Urban Renewal in Historic Town Centre and Public Space Improvement in Jakarta”, the city’s local authority invited experts and urban practitioners to garner fresh perspectives in incorporating culture to the city’s sustainable development plan. UCLG ASPAC utilized its network to facilitate the collaboration of UCLG, Connective Cities, and various cities in Asia, Europe, and Indonesia for further perusal of Jakarta’s local authority.

The workshop put highlight on the case of revamping Kota Tua. This historic city center of Jakarta has been the original downtown of the city and recorded various colonial histories. Due to its decline of importance, however, Kota Tua has become neglected. Yet, there has been a strong shot to revitalize and restore the historic city center. The focus is on the refurbishment of public spaces as well as local social and economic revitalization of its wider surroundings and related mobility issues. Through the 3-day learning session,

local governments of Jakarta garnered fresh perspective from expertise of cities within Asia-Pacific and beyond: Vigan (the Philippines), Surakarta, Semarang, and Surabaya (Indonesia), Guangzhou (China), and Germany.

Revitalization of urban areas in Vigan, Surakarta, Surabaya, and Semarang, as presented by delegates of respective city, shows similarities. Each city puts forward the element of culture in renewing certain urban spots while also maintaining respective particular uniqueness: Surakarta ensuring each public space can accommodate regular cultural events, Semarang revitalizing the city’s area which closely related with culture and heritage, Surabaya focusing on community participation in revitalizing cultural hall, and Vigan also highlights culture with emphasis on sustainability (conversing engine-based cycle to human-based tricycle, river rehabilitation program, solid waste management, and adaptive re-use of historic building). In revitalization, local government of each city also ensures the process impacts positively to local economic development (esp. street vendors) and pedestrians.

Slightly different, local government of Guangzhou focusses urban renewal in the city through people-centered infrastructure development: widening the sidewalk, creating temporary car parking, revitalization of front space of cultural relics to be more comfortable meeting space for pedestrian, providing sufficient bike lane, providing space for person with disabilities, balancing the space needed for pedestrians and cars.

At the end of the meeting, recommendations are given for the perusal of Jakarta’s local government. The forum agreed that there is a need to do good collaboration between departments to arrange a yearly and a 5-year program which includes looking at priorities as well as securing the finance. Other recommendations proposed are maintaining the quality of Kota Tua to make tourists and residents feel comfortable, synergizing community participation with prioritazion of single measures. The forum also encouraged to restart communication with stakeholders and put emphasis on the importance of including the heritage city to the local’s mid-term development plan.