ALTERNATIVE FUTURE FOR ARAB EL YASSAR AREA

Abstract

Many historic residential areas in Egypt are suffering marginality and exclusion especially in greater Cairo, where historic areas face the enormous pressures of the growing city. This study reveals the challenges of neglected communities living near monuments sites and the governmental revitalization efforts that focus more on the preservation of single listed buildings without a comprehensive methodology of urban revitalization and sustainable development for the whole area and local community.

This research proposes a revitalization strategy for the case study of Arab El Yasar, which represents a model for poor communities living very close to significant monuments. The area is located within the buffer zone of the Citadel and thus, being the transitional space between the Citadel and the City kept Arab El Yasar a place of great tension and conflict. Moreover, monuments protection laws forbid any kind of development in such areas which kept the area in a frozen state for years and affected the historical urban fabric. Therefore, the proposed strategy responds directly to the current situation challenges and aims at transforming these challenges into real opportunities through re-thinking the buffer zone of the Citadel to help reimagine an alternative future for the area of Arab El Yasar.