Swiss Spacial planning?

The artificiality of the city makes Johanna Spyri’s character Heidi and her friend Clara sick; the nature of the mountain world makes the two girls healthy again. The conflict between the evil city and the good landscape has also shaped Swiss spatial planning since its beginnings in the 1930s. After 1960, urban sprawl, environmental degradation and land price explosion exceeded the pain threshold of many segments of the population. The Federal Decree on urgent measures in the field of spatial planning (1972) with provisional protected areas was “a hammer blow, a revolutionary act with regard to federalism”. The current issue is the revision of the Spatial Planning Act. After the first stage with settlement development against the interior, the second stage now follows on building in the landscape outside the building zone. Spatial planners from science and practice discuss current trends in urban and spatial development in the light of historical sources and contemporary testimonies.

Introductory remarks: Dr. Daniel Nerlich, Deputy Director Archive of Contemporary History

Panelists:

• Paul Schneeberger (Chair), Head of Transport Policy, Swiss Association of Cities and Towns
• Anna Schindler, Director Urban Development Zurich
• Dr. Daniel Kolb, Cantonal Planner, Canton of Aargau