Planning for Heritage Conservation and Community Development: Study of Historic Town “Thimi” of Kathmandu Valley

Abstract

At a time of increasing globalization, conservation of heritage and cultural diversity of any particular region or place has become an important challenge for governments and people everywhere. Rapid increase in population and accelerating influx of people to the cities and towns has threatened existing heritage and settlement structure. As a result, many cities in developing countries have been transformed from concentrated and identifiable towns into amorphous urban areas. The historical urban areas and towns which embody the values of traditional urban cultures are being threatened, physically degraded, damaged or even destroyed by the impact of rapid urban development and poor governance. The communities with the centuries old traditions, cultures, and lifestyles are facing irreversible cultural, social and economic losses. In this regard, the main challenge is “how to balance development and heritage conservation, and contribute towards sustainable development”. It is suggested that conservation of urban morphology and historic urban fabric, which support the community’s social structure and traditional activities, are more related to governance and planning process, without which the historic fabric will be unreadable, and all other conservation efforts will be incomprehensible to everyone (Cohen, 1999). In this context, this study considers a case of historic town Thimi, which is characterized by the century’s old historic urban fabric, built heritages, beautiful local arts and crafts, unique feast and festivals and Newar lifestyle. Traditionally, the town had a supra regional importance because of its pottery, mask production, weavings, and self-sustained local economy. Production of local art and crafts is declining, and traditionally well-sustained community is facing several problems. In this context, this study firstly highlights on the theoretical context of urban conservation followed by the discussion on context of heritage resources in Thimi. Present paper stresses on the key issues of heritage deterioration, and analyzes the context of heritage conservation and its contribution towards community development.