Article 1: February, 2023
Introduction From trolley train rides along the streets of Punda and Otrobanda, to checker tournaments and street art competitions along the Breedestraat, to food vendors, street fairs, and live music on the many squares - the celebration of Willemstad as a World Heritage Site is a festive one that makes it to the city scene every five years.
On December 4th, 2022 the historic inner city of Willemstad celebrated its 25th anniversary as a World Heritage Site. UNESCO's World Heritage List can be considered as the Michelin-list for heritage; its status a 5-star rating carefully put together by experts in the field; a pin on the world map that affirms that Curaçao's capital plays a relevant part in our global cultural history.
Being the 5th time that Curaçao celebrated this special event, this article illustrates what it means for Willemstad to be on this list; what kind of historic value underlies its enlistment, how it meets UNESCO's requirements, and what can be expected for its future.
Past
World Heritage Status
When thinking of World Heritage Sites, associations that often come to mind are iconic places such as the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the Taj Mahal in India, and the Vatican City in Italy. A lot closer to home are sites like Old Havana, Cuba, Historic San Juan, Puerto Rico, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, and the City of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, all sharing a common cultural history with Willemstad. Together with these historic cities in the Caribbean region, Willemstad belongs to a unique category of heritage sites, which form a system linked by the cords of a colonial past, each with a distinct expression of its own. One of Willemstad's most distinct features is Dutch influence as a result of the period of Dutch expansion in the 17th century. The natural harbor of Curaçao quickly evolved into a Dutch trading settlement when European town planning and architecture were introduced.
Historic Willemstad developed continuously over the following three centuries and reflected not only Dutch urban and architectural traditions but also styles from Spanish and Portuguese colonial towns with which Willemstad engaged in trade. Additional influences of the Americas and Africa, and cultural elements of the region transformed these European elements into a typical Caribbean development. The resulting growth of a multicultural community and of the four urban districts; Punda, Otrobanda, Pietermaai, and Scharloo, show the organic and subsequent stages of the city's cultural and historical development over the course of three centuries. These distinct qualities of the city have earned the historic inner city of Willemstad its place on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1997. A unique position, considering the Curaçaoan capital is 1 of the 5 Caribbean cities to make it on the list and 1 of the 12 World Heritage Sites within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Past
Outstanding Universal Value
When it comes to World Heritage listing, it all revolves around what UNESCO identifies as Outstanding Universal Value (OUV): cultural and/or natural significance which is so exceptional as to transcend national boundaries and to be of common importance for present and future generations of all humanity. For a site to be eligible for World Heritage enlistment, at least 1 of the 10 strict criteria for assessing the Outstanding Universal Value needs to be met. The historic inner city of Willemstad meets the following three: The site has to: ii. exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design
iv. be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape that illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history
v. be an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change
Past
Unique Characteristics
The characteristics, both tangible and intangible, that make up the description of these heritage values are called attributes. Some of the attributes underlying the Outstanding Universal Value of Willemstad are:
The four city districts of Punda, Otrobanda, Scharloo and Pietermaai
Natural harbor
Human interactions with the environment
Dutch colonial trading settlement
Dutch architecture with Afro-American, Iberian and Caribbean influences
Social and cultural influences of inhabitants
A defense system consisting of fortifications
Aside from meeting these criteria, the site's authenticity and integrity also play a large role; this entails the genuineness and intactness of the site. Most of the historic urban structure of Willemstad dating from 1650-1900 is still intact and remains to be the original setting for many monuments that are authentic in design, materials, and craftmanship.
Management & Conservation Lastly, to ensure the conservation of the nominated site, UNESCO requires that adequate legal and/ or traditional protection management mechanisms are in place. Luckily, at the time of inscription, Curaçao already had some legal frameworks set up.
The Island Monuments Ordinance (Monumenteneilandsverordening) made it possible that monuments could receive a protected status, and the Island Development Plan (Eilandelijk Ontwikkelingsplan, E.O.P.) ensured the protection of Willemstad's cityscape, where new building projects can be assessed based on their appropriateness within the existing historical structure.
Present
Vibrant Historic Downtown Though much of Willemstad's fiber remains genuine and intact, the historic inner city is subject to continuous change as vibrant restaurants, bars and hotels pop up in Pietermaai, murals have made their way to the public walls of Otrobanda, office spaces in Scharloo are made available to young start-ups and Punda aims its focus on attracting more residents. The latter of Which is a result of the sharp decline of the local population in Willemstad, which has almost quartered in the last 50 years. The historic inner city of Willemstad is no home to approximately 745 (1) monuments, and 2.000 residents, and hosts more than half a million tourists annually. Though the Curaçao government is primarily responsible for the management and protection of our World Heritage Site, a great many initiatives and organizations are also devoted to this cause.
Future
With several developments taking place and others in the pipeline, the future of Historic Willemstad looks exciting. One major project underway is the redevelopment of the Waterfort Plaza area. The Algemeen Pensioenfonds van Curaçao (APC) bought the former Plaza Hotel complex in 2020 and is currently working on the development plans. The ambitions are to create an attractive mixed-use area that will positively impact the surroundings of Punda and the rest of Willemstad while respecting the cultural and historic values of Historic Willemstad as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The historic Waterfort arches are also part of the redevelopment and tell a rich narrative of the site's history.
Festivities To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Willemstad of the UNESCO list and to start the Road2Plaza placemaking program for the revitalization of the Waterfort Plaza area in Punda, APC collaborated with Kaya Kaya to host the Road2Plaza Waterfort Festival on December 3rd, 2022. This event was all about performances, arts, music, delicious food, good vibes, and educational experiences. Road2Plaza is a temporary program aimed at placemaking to start making the project area livelier by providing various opportunities for residents and tourists to experience the Waterfort Plaza area in a completely new way and to give people a taste of the future.
Author: Stephanie van Heijningen, 2023 Commissioned by APC
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