Consequences of Designating the Recent Past: Korreweg-district, Groningen, The Netherlands

Abstract

In The Netherlands the national government is busy designating residential districts from the recent period 1910-1940. To gain deeper insight into the consequences of designating the recent past, a case study of a residential district from the period 1910-1940 in the city of Groningen in the north of The Netherlands will be discussed. The Korreweg-district was designated as an urban conservation area in 2000. The reactions of the residents with regard to the designation of their residential area as an urban conservation area, and in some cases their dwelling house as national monument, will be described. One important question with regard to this is: do they acknowledge the recent historicity of their residential district built in 1910-1940 and, if so, are they prepared to pay the costs of maintenance and undergo the restrictions of living in an urban conservation area and in some cases a national monument?