Sustainability of Historical City Centers Combined With New Administrative and Commercial Areas

Abstract

The construction of a new commercial and administrative center near the historical city center of Ostrava resulted in an empty area. It has already become the third non-functional site in this part of the city. The opportunities for these sites and their future in the city structure is discussed. The current situation, attitude of the government and results of past architectural competitions were analyzed, and in referring to earlier research by other authors, some potential options were explored. These were applied to the conceptual proposals of architecture students at the Technical University of Ostrava. Students see the future of historical cores in the construction of multifunctional flexible objects and specific cultural and social objects. They tried to connect individual dysfunctional sites with a newly designed public space. The results were discussed with the city council of Ostrava, the professional and general public, and then displayed as exhibitions.