The use of elements of cultural heritage and local identity and the quality of public spaces in rural areas in Poland

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to explore the relationship between the use of elements of cultural heritage and local identity and the quality of public space projects implemented in rural areas. The study, carried out on a sample of 231 investments cofinanced by the European Union for operations of the type ’Shaping public space’ under the measure ‚Basic services and village renewal in rural areas’ covered by the Rural Development Programme for 2014–2020, showed that numerous generally accessible sports and leisure facilities are currently developed in Polish villages but usually result in the creation of spaces that are not particularly innovative, repeating existing solutions and not using local potentials and traditions. At the same time, the analysis of projects implemented under the above-mentioned programme confirmed that emphasising the local identity and heritage of a given place is associated with a more innovative approach to rural design and, as a result, may affect the holistic assessment and value of a given investment. The use of the genius loci element is a factor that significantly affects the value of public space, allows for the preservation of distinctiveness, and supports the development of individual villages in Poland. The results of the study suggest that drawing inspiration from and making reference to elements of cultural heritage and local identity may contribute to reversing the negative phenomena observed in the physiognomy of rural areas in recent years, such as the typification of architectural forms imposing universal unification, as well as distancing itself from local customs and place identity.