3. Conclusions and DRAFT Policy recommendations

The ENTRUST project is aiming at a new approach towards urban regeneration in a sense of active participation of all relevant partners (communities, business and public sector) to achieve a new quality of urban regeneration. So we can say that we want to change the approach and to change the targeted areas. And the following draft recom­mendations should give ideas what kind of structures and instruments we need for this.

• Sufficient regeneration aims should integrate ‘people, business and place', are set within wider city and national strategies, promote community capacity building, have sufficient timescales to deliver tangible change and exploit the geographical competitiveness of the area
   
• To integrate a broad spectrum of partners and to achieve a sustainable development that tackles all the different issues in a neighbourhood a shift of perspec­tive from solely physical renewal (housing etc.) to socio-economical aims (employment, integration etc.) is necessary
   
• Structural and legitimising means have to be provided to serve multifunctional aims, e.g. cross-sector integrated funding and international networking
   
• Integrated approaches need the integration of relevant policy-levels to be successful
   
• Aims and visions are to be backed up with funding for multi-purpose or cross-sector projects
   
• A clear ranking or hierarchy of aims is needed to avoid conflicts in the implementation phase
   
• Ongoing efficient process monitoring and evaluation should be viewed as an integral part of the regeneration process and preferred to ex-post evaluation
   
• The na­tional and municipal levels have to be more sensitive and responsible reflecting local visions and aims in the top political strategies
   
• Clear framework for the local visions and initiatives to a avoid unrealistic “wish-lists”
   
• Mediation of aims, regulations and frameworks between higher and local levels is necessary to avoid conflicts and mistakes
   
• Strong mediators are needed, e.g. area-manager. And they have to be backed up with sufficient instruments for this task
   
• A broad and long-term vision with positive connotations, realistic and visible/tangible elements and with consideration of the interests of all stakeholders can help to attract and involve all relevant stakeholders in the regeneration-process
   
• The punctual devolvement of regulations could help to give creative potentials and pilot-projects a better chance.
   
• A general approach that judges projects by their net effect (that assesses what would be of most benefit for the community and for the area) would be helpful, and it should have the form of a law.
   
• Traces of the urban cultural heritage remain the dominating feature of identity and historic continuity. At the same time the cultural heritage is a big asset for the attrac­tiveness of the city. The transfer of tangible urban heritage also means safeguarding the ‘intangible' heritage, i.e. cultural, architectural, aesthetic and social experiences of the former city life. Therefore it is necessary to look for new, more careful and effective ways of integration and adoption of the historic properties into a contemporary regeneration of the city.
   
• The role of immigrants and their influence for growth of deprived neighbourhoods is increasing and has to be a key fo­cus of attention in any urban regeneration programme.