Town projects

Town projects implemented in the scope of the Septentrion project have the aim of testing out innovative and transferable approaches for enriching fortified heritage, with a view to sustainable development.

They are implemented in the framework of the charter signed in December 2003 by all partners, which defines the objectives highlighted by the architectural, urban, landscape and environmental heritage of the stronghold fortified town.

They are subject to an original assessment method, adapted to the issue of the « From fortified town to sustainable town » project. This method, based upon the creation of a common language that can be transposed in the «targets of the sustainable town», enables the exchange of experiences from different towns and to make legible the combined objectives of the project. These targets are defined on three levels: the territory, the site and the urban structure. Designed in the form of logos, these targets are a means of recalling at any moment what constitutes the originality and unity of the territory and its desire for sustainable and innovative development that is inkeeping with its heritage.

The projects are presented in a synthetic manner in the form of project files that provide a global view of the operation carried out by the commune: the project objectives, the conditions for its completion, the main objective to which the project is attached and the results obtained. The comparative approach of the different elements allows an initial quick evaluation; it aims to lead to a finer assessment of the project.

Finally, the Septentrion files bring together in a synthetic document all the processes undertaken by a town in the scope of the Septentrion project: the elements of knowledge associated to the potentialites map, the elements of the citizens' debate, the project summaries.