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INTERREG III-B- 6th call
- Main Features -
“BALTIC CULTURE AND TOURISM ROUTE FORTRESSES”
Network
for development and economic utilisation of cultural heritage,
creating trans national culture and tourism products,
promoting scientific co-operation
- Start project -
For thousands of years man has built fortresses for his protection. Exciting military
architecture has been developed in recent centuries that belongs both to the World and
to the European Cultural Heritage. Many of these fortifications were in military use until
the end of the Cold War. They are extensively damaged.
 Fortress Vistulamouth
Project programme and work packages Project Information
Under the EU funding project “Baltic Culture and Tourism Route Fortresses” – The Baltic
Fort Route – 19 partners from 4 nations are seeking to promote the transformation of
historical fortifications into centres of culture, art, leisure, tourism and fascinating nature,
in line with the philosophy “From war to peace”, “From closed mystery locations
to public living space” and “From military to cultural”.
Project-initiative from
City of Kostrzyn
August 2004
1 PROJECT
RATIONALE
Whole Europe is
equipped with important fortresses from different centuries, a military architecture
unique world-wide. The fortresses are witnesses of political, military,
economic, social and urban processes, until into the cold war. In Western Europe most fortresses has been developed since
decades, they are open to the public as cultural and tourist centers. Through
extensive former military utilization fortresses in North and Eastern
Europe are ready to disappear forever as ruins. Some fortresses
still stand in administration of the military. The local authorities, regional
players are no longer in a position to solve problems alone - with protection,
cultivation and development. There are missing receipts by cultivation and
maintenance, no transnational cooperation exists to the economic utilization.
Already in 1995 the Council of European Union
recommend a strengthen transnational cooperation concerning the protection and
tourist development of fortresses. Experiences from the INTERREGIIIB project
CONVERNET were important for the project idea as well as the increasing demand
on tourism concerning fortresses, town history in North and Eastern
Europe.
By the structure of a permanent, transnational and
sector crossing network the European heritage "fortresses" shall be
developed as showcase to an attractive range of products like culture
and tourism - corresponding with the necessities of the market. There shall be also
a network of fortresses as international tourism routes and a marketing under
an integrative label.
The project grants cooperation between "fortress
communities" and different specialized scientific facilities, which are
participating as autonomous project partners in cooperation with "fortress
communities" and which - based on division of labour - should be extended as international
centres of consultations and expertises (brain pool).
In the project-preparation were enforced 3 workshops
(Dömitz, Kostrzyn, Kaunas) and several meetings
in Kostrzyn and Berlin.
Protagonists from whole Europe has interest in
a participation. This shows the enormous demand for transnational cooperation,
know-how transference, at models and innovative methods to the
fortress-development, to the transnational network and to the common
culture-development with economic effects.
According to this demand the INTERREG IIIB project
shall be developed a model for Europe.
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