The heritage of PCH (Historical Cities Program): critical evaluation and deployments 40 years later

Abstract

The paper makes a critical assessment of the Historic Cities Program (HCP), implemented by the federal government of Brazil from 1973 to 1987. HCP was a first broad nature preservation policy, integrated and decentralized, and is until today, the one with the most durable results, whether positive or negative. This paper - based on research conducted by the author in the mid-1990s and in recent research by other authors -seeks to rescue some little-known aspects of this program that are useful to the current reflection on the heritage preservation policies. It also seeks to evaluate in a conceptual, institutional and operational point of view, the legacy of this experience that, in a pioneering way, attempted to perform the difficult task of preserving the urban heritage with economic sustainability - something still not achieved in contemporary Brazil in a consistent and satisfactory way.