Prioritize preserving the essence of heritage.

Việt Nam•25/04/2024

The development plan for Hoi An follows the principle of "preservation for development, development for preservation," with the characteristics of an ecological, cultural, and tourist city. Photo: QT

The "key" to urban development.

Due to the unique nature of the heritage city, since December 2015, the province has had a policy allowing Hoi An to select foreign consultants to carry out the planning.

After a long delay due to various obstacles, in 2021 the joint venture between the National Institute of Architecture ( Ministry of Construction ) and AREP Villa Company (France) was selected as the consulting unit to develop this project.

According to the latest draft from the consulting consortium, Hoi An will be developed according to the principle of "preservation for development, development for preservation," with the characteristics of an ecological, cultural, and tourist city.

The planning proposes development strategies that prioritize conservation, combining development with ecosystem connectivity to heritage sites, creating new values to improve and preserve the existing diversity of urban values, and establishing the distinctive "garden in the city - city in the garden" structure of Hoi An.

The revised master plan for Hoi An City will include an ecosystem development strategy to preserve Hoi An's unique, diverse, and volatile water spaces. Photo: QT

The pillars of Hoi An's urban development strategy include: an ecosystem development strategy to preserve Hoi An's unique, diverse, and volatile water spaces; a cultural development strategy to promote Hoi An as a city of living heritage; and a tourism development strategy to alleviate overcrowding and promote more sustainable development.

The draft revised master plan for Hoi An City until 2035, with a vision to 2050, divides the city into seven sub-zones: historical heritage urban area; island urban area associated with a cultural and service center; new urban and rural development area; island ecological residential area; coastal gateway service urban area; urban area associated with river and water landscape; and residential area associated with biosphere conservation.

The master plan for Hoi An City will direct urban development towards the west (Thanh Ha ward, Cam Ha commune), developing new urban clusters and infrastructure systems along the main regional transportation axis, and promoting mixed-use urban development in the true sense of a "livable" city for its residents.

Mr. Nguyen Van Son, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hoi An City, said: "While waiting for the project to be approved, Hoi An is gradually implementing this direction by preserving as much of the landscape as possible and maximizing the use of prime land to establish parks and green spaces."

The relevant parties are urgently carrying out the remaining steps, because until the city's master plan is approved, no projects can be invested in the area, and attracting investment is also very difficult."

The Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee chaired the meeting. Photo: Q.T. — On April 22, the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee chaired a meeting to hear a report on the revised master plan for Hoi An City until 2035, with a vision to 2050. Photo: QT

Preserving unique values

The debate over preserving the values of the ancient city and the goal of upgrading it to a Class II urban area has been inconsistent for a long time. A Class II urban area, based on specific criteria, is the appropriate goal to preserve the distinctive values of Hoi An.

Therefore, the consulting consortium proposed a population scenario of 160,000 people in 2035 and 230,000 people in 2050 (including the converted population), lower than the previously approved target to ensure reduced pressure on the city. In 2022, Hoi An's population reached over 100,000 people (excluding the converted population).

According to Standing Committee member of the Provincial Party Committee Le Tri Thanh, the population target proposed by the consultants is appropriate because if the population growth target for Hoi An were pushed too high while the current natural population growth rate is quite low, it would lead to a large increase in migration, which would not ensure the sustainable development of Hoi An. Some infrastructure indicators to meet the criteria of a type II urban area in Hoi An only need to be close to, not necessarily completely identical to, those that meet the criteria.

The population density in the inner city area of Hoi An is already very high, over 2,800 people/km². Photo: QT

Mr. Tran Anh, Secretary of the City Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Hoi An City, said: "Currently, there are many type II cities nationwide, but a living heritage city like Hoi An can be said to be unique."

Hoi An recognizes what is more important to focus on in this project. Furthermore, the population density in Hoi An's nine inner-city wards is already very high (over 2,800 people/km²), and if population growth continues, it could easily become a densely populated urban area.”

According to Luong Nguyen Minh Triet, alternate member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, the Hoi An planning needs to be urgently finalized to address the conflicting aspects: between growth and traffic pressure and access to tourism products; between the lives of local people and tourists and visitors from other places; between preserving values and economic development; and between population size and infrastructure needs.

"It is crucial to focus on updating climate change response solutions because Hoi An is a vulnerable city. In the future, tourism will remain Hoi An's pillar, but we also need to explore new avenues to create a better balance in the face of risks."

"The planning limit of 9 stories for construction in the western urban development area is reasonable, and we need to proactively develop planning and architectural management regulations to ensure maximum compliance with the plan and minimize future adjustments," said Provincial Party Secretary Luong Nguyen Minh Triet.

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