Specifying the significance of historic sites in heritage planning

Heritage planning is the preservation, conservation, rehabilitation, restoration and management of heritage resources. This paper aims to propose an approach for specifying the values and importance of historic sites. In this study, the Historic Urban Landscape approach is taken as the research framework. This approach moves beyond the preservation of the physical environment and focuses on the entire human environment with all its tangible and intangible qualities. It seeks to increase the sustainability of planning and design interventions by taking into account the existing built environment, intangible heritage, cultural diversity, socio-economic and environmental factors along with local community values. The result of this study indicates that historic sites are a social and economic asset and a cultural resource that preservation plans should be ba¬sed on an understanding of their values. The task includes a report comprising written material and graphic material. The contents of the report should be arranged to suit the site and the limitations on the task, but it will generally be in two sections: first, the assessment of cultural significance and second, the statement of cultural significance. Therefore, determining the significance of historic places is to be considered as the basis for planning and implementing management strategies and sustainable development. Furthermore, heritage planning needs a progression that goes from identification, to evaluation, to management and together form a basis for preservation policies.