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Churches of Chiloé

Chile
Factors affecting the property in 2013*
  • Commercial development
International Assistance: requests for the property until 2013
Requests approved: 1 (from 2002-2002)
Total amount approved : 50,000 USD
2002 Emergency assistance for the Churches of Chiloé (Approved)   50,000 USD
Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2013

In February 2012, information was received by the World Heritage Centre on the construction of a shopping mall, in the vicinity of the Castro Church, a component part of the inscribed serial property. In conformity with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, technical information was requested from the State Party on 8 March 2012. The State Party submitted the requested information on 12 February 2013. This information includes a Technical Report on the shopping mall, as well as copies of the legal instruments mentioned in the report and twenty-five blueprints of floor plans and sections of the shopping mall building.

Furthermore, the draft Statement of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) has been finalized by the State Party.

a)  Project background

The State Party reports on the municipal regulation applicable to the church setting. The town of Castro has a communal regulatory plan that includes a zoning plan. The area where the Castro shopping mall is located corresponds to the central zone of Castro. Existing regulations only allow a maximum construction height of 10 meters. The communal plan does not include provisions for protecting the character of the city, its urban heritage and setting.

The Technical Report provides a description of the background of the construction project and the legal course of actions for its approval. The construction permit for the shopping mall was granted in April 2008. The project involves the construction of five story building over an area of 24,137 square meters and 149 parking spaces. In November 2011, the construction company was fined by the Municipality for constructing in the adjacent lots without a permit. In February 2012, suspension of works was requested by the Municipality because construction exceeded the authorised surface and modifications had been made with respect to the limitations of the permit initially granted. In spite of this request, works continued and further fines were imposed for not suspending works. In April 2012, the Municipality of Castro and the owner of the shopping mall signed a Transaction Contract to end illegal processes and to regularise the construction permits.

b)  Project evaluation

The construction process was evaluated by the General Comptroller of the Republic, at its Ruling No. 61211 on 3 October 2012, which ascertained the legal flaws and irregularities, particularly in the Transaction Contract. There is no indication as to when a final permit might be issued that would regularise all works already constructed, and would approve new ones for the parking areas, in a single project.

The National Monuments Council has expressed a negative opinion on the initiative of the Municipality of Castro for building underground parking lots, and has requested official information on this matter, for submission to the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies. However, the National Monuments Council has limited mandates in regard to development and new construction outside the areas legally recognised as heritage, consequently the preservation of the Outstanding Universal Value of the property cannot be ensured.

 

The size, scale and location (on the limits of a natural plateau at the peninsula) of the shopping mall make it a dominant element of the landscape of Castro, particularly in light of the characteristics of its traditional constructions and the scale of the setting. From the sea, the new mall is a prevailing element of the Castro skyline, competing transversally against the inscribed component part, with the dominant silhouettes of the towers of the Church of Castro, and with the traditional setting.

Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2013

The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies note that the buffer zones of the component parts of property are limited to encompass only the adjacent square areas or plazas. In addition, there are no legal provisions or regulatory measures in place to ensure the protection of the buffer zone and the setting of each of the inscribed components. It should also be noted that there are no legal provisions requiring environmental or heritage impact assessments for these types of constructions.

 

Moreover, the limited mandate of the National Monuments Council is insufficient to protect the Outstanding Universal Value of the property in respect to developments within the setting of the property. This lack of protection is reflected in the process that led to the approval of the construction of the shopping mall at Castro, which has a significant negative impact on the visual characteristics of the component part of the inscribed property and its context.

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2013
37 COM 7B.94
Churches of Chiloé (Chile) (C 971)

The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37COM/7B,

2.  Takes note of the comprehensive information submitted by the State Party but regrets that the information was submitted almost a year after having been requested;

3.  Also regrets that the shopping mall was constructed, given its impact on the setting and skyline of Castro;

4.  Requests the State Party to invite, as soon as possible, a joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission to address the following elements:

a)  The definition of the characteristics of the wider setting for all component parts, in relation to the Outstanding Universal Value of the property, and put in place appropriate protection, including the review of the buffer zones and regulatory measures for the protection of the setting of the Churches of Chiloe,

b)  The review of the current protection and management arrangements for the property and the required measures to improve the legal framework and permit granting processes between types of preservation and institutional competences,

c)  The update and enforcement of legislative and regulatory measures to ensure that the defined characteristics of the wider setting are adequately protected and that new development takes into account the visual relations between the inscribed property and its setting,

d)  The measures to mitigate the visual impact of the Castro shopping mall on the component part as well as other measures  to better integrate it with the existing setting;

5.  Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014 , an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014. 

37 COM 8E
Adoption of retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value
The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Documents WHC-13/37.COM/8E and WHC-13/37.COM/8E.Add,

2.  Congratulates States Parties for the excellent work accomplished in the elaboration of retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value for World Heritage properties in their territories;

3.  Adopts the retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value, as presented in the Annex of Document WHC-13/37.COM/8E, for the following World Heritage properties:

  • Andorra: Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley;
  • Argentina: Cueva de las Manos, Río Pinturas; Jesuit Block and Estancias of Córdoba; Quebrada de Humahuaca; Iguazu National Park;
  • Australia: Shark Bay, Western Australia; Greater Blue Mountains Area; Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens; Willandra Lakes Region; Kakadu National Park;
  • Austria / Hungary: Fertö / Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape;
  • Bangladesh: The Sundarbans; Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur;
  • Belgium : La Grand-Place, Brussels;
  • Belgium / France: Belfries of Belgium and France;
  • Bolivia: Fuerte de Samaipata; Tiwanaku: Spiritual and Political Centre of the Tiwanaku Culture; Historic City of Sucre; Jesuit Missions of the Chiquitos;
  • Brazil: Serra da Capivara National Park;
  • Chile: Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works; Rapa Nui National Park; Churches of Chiloé; Sewell Mining Town; Historic quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaiso;
  • China: Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area; Mount Huangshan; Mountain Resort and its Outlying Temples, Chengde; Ancient City of Ping Yao; Classical Gardens of Suzhou; Summer Palace, an Imperial Garden in Beijing; Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui – Xidi and Hongcun; Longmen Grottoes; Yungang Grottoes; Yin Xu; Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties; Historic center of Macao; Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor;
  • Colombia: Port, Fortresses and Group of Monuments, Cartagena; Historic Centre of Santa Cruz de Mompox; San Agustín Archaeological Park; National Archeological Park of Tierradentro;
  • Costa Rica: Area de Conservación Guanacaste;
  • Cuba: Trinidad and the Valley de los Ingenios; Desembarco del Granma National Park; Alejandro de Humboldt National Park; Old Havana;
  • Cyprus: Choirokoitia; Painted Churches in the Troodos Region;
  • Denmark: Kronborg Castle;
  • Ecuador: City of Quito; Historic Centre of Santa Ana de los Ríos de Cuenca; Galápagos Islands;
  • El Salvador: Joya de Cerén Archaeological Site;
  • Ethiopia: Aksum; Fasil Ghebbi;
  • Finland / Sweden: High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago;
  • Guatemala: Archeological Park and Ruins of Quirigua; Antigua Guatemala;
  • Germany: Classical Weimar; Messel Pit Fossil Site; Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier; Aachen Cathedral; Cologne Cathedral; Hanseatic City of Lübeck; Historic Centres of Stralsund and Wismar; Museumsinsel (Museum Island), Berlin; Old town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof; Speyer Cathedral; Town Hall and Roland on the Marketplace of Bremen; Town of Bamberg;
  • Greece: Mount Athos;
  • Honduras: Maya Site of Copan;
  • Hungary: Old Village of Hollókő and its Surroundings; Millenary Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma and its Natural Environment; Early Christian Necropolis of Pécs (Sopianae); Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape; Hortobágy National Park - the Puszta; Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue;
  • Hungary / Slovakia: Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst;
  • India: Sun Temple, Konârak; Group of Monuments at Hampi; Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya; Elephanta Caves; Great Living Chola Temples; Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus); Mountain Railways of India;
  • Indonesia: Ujung Kulon National Park; Komodo National Park; Lorentz National Park; Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra; Sangiran Early Man Site;
  • Iran (Islamic Republic of): Pasargadae; Takht-e Soleyman;
  • Ireland: Archaeological Ensemble of the Bend of the Boyne;
  • Italy: Venice and its Lagoon;
  • Japan: Yakushima; Shirakami-Sanchi; Buddhist Monuments in the Horyu-ji Area; Shiretoko; Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities); Shrines and Temples of Nikko; Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range; Itsukushima Shinto Shrine; Himeji-jo;
  • Latvia: Historic Centre of Riga;
  • Lao People’s Democratic Republic: Town of Luang Prabang;
  • Lithuania: Vilnius Historic Centre;
  • Luxembourg: City of Luxembourg: its Old Quarters and Fortifications;
  • Malaysia: Kinabalu Park;
  • Mauritius: Aapravasi Ghat;
  • Mexico: Pre-Hispanic City of Teotihuacan; Historic Centre of Morelia; Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatepetl; Historic Monuments Zone of Querétaro; Historic Fortified Town of Campeche; Franciscan Missions in the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro; Agave Landscape and the Ancient Industrial Facilities of Tequila; Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino; Ancient Maya City of Calakmul, Campeche; Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalco; Historic Monuments Zone of Tlacotalpan; Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza; Historic Centre of Zacatecas; Historic Centre of Oaxaca and Archaeological Site of Monte Albán; Sian Ka’an; Luis Barragán House and Studio; Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Francisco; Archaeological Zone of Paquimé, Casas Grandes; Historic Centre of Puebla; Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines; Pre-hispanic town of Uxmal; Hospicio Cabañas, Guadalajara; Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California; Historic Centre of Mexico City and Xochimilco; Pre-Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque; El Tajin, Pre-Hispanic City;
  • Netherlands: Ir.D.F. Woudagemaal (D.F. Wouda Steam Pumping Station); Schokland and Surroundings; Droogmakerij de Beemster (Beemster Polder); Rietveld Schröderhuis (Rietveld Schröder House);
  • Nicaragua: Ruins of León Viejo;
  • Nigeria: Sukur Cultural Landscape;
  • Norway: Rock Art of Alta; Urnes Stave Church; Bryggen;
  • Oman: Archaeological Sites of Bat, Al-Khutm and Al-Ayn;
  • Pakistan: Taxila; Historical Monuments at Makli, Thatta; Rohtas Fort; Buddhist Ruins of Takht-i-Bahi and Neighbouring City Remains at Sahr-i-Bahlol;
  • Panama: Darien National Park; Archaeological Site of Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá;
  • Paraguay: Jesuit Missions of La Santísima Trinidad de Paraná and Jesús de Tavarangue;
  • Peru: City of Cuzco; Chavin (Archaeological Site); Historic Centre of Lima; Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu;
  • Philippines: Historic town of Vigan;
  • South Africa: uKhahlamba / Drakensberg Park;
  • Switzerland: Abbey of St Gall; Benedictine Convent of St John at Müstair; Old City of Berne; Three Castles, Defensive Wall and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona;
  • Thailand: Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex; Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries; Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns; Ban Chiang Archaeological Site;
  • Turkey: Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia; Nemrut Dağ; Great Mosque and Hospital of Divriği; Hierapolis-Pamukkale;
  • United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Blaenavon Industrial Landscape; Blenheim Palace; Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine's Abbey, and St Martin's Church; Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd; City of Bath; Durham Castle and Cathedral; Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast; Heart of Neolithic Orkney; Ironbridge Gorge; Maritime Greenwich; New Lanark; Old and New Towns of Edinburgh; Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites; Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey; Tower of London; St Kilda; Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and Saint Margaret's Church;
  • Uruguay: Historic Quarter of the City of Colonia del Sacramento;
  • Uzbekistan: Itchan Kala;
  • Venezuela : Coro and its Port; Ciudad Universitaria de Caracas;

4.  Decides that retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value for World Heritage properties in Danger will be reviewed by the Advisory Bodies in priority;

5.  Further decides that, considering the high number of retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value to be examined, the order in which they will be reviewed by the Advisory Bodies will follow the Second Cycle of Periodic Reporting, namely:

  • World Heritage properties in the Arab States;
  • World Heritage properties in Africa;
  • World Heritage properties in Asia and the Pacific;
  • World Heritage properties in Latin America and the Caribbean;
  • World Heritage properties in Europe and North America;

6.  Requests the World Heritage Centre to harmonise all sub-headings in the adopted Statements of Outstanding Universal Value where appropriate and when resources and staff time allow to carry out this work;

7.  Also requests the State Parties, Advisory Bodies and World Heritage Centre to ensure the use of gender-neutral language in the Statements proposed for adoption to the World Heritage Committee;

8.  Further requests the World Heritage Centre to keep the adopted Statements in line with subsequent decisions by the World Heritage Committee concerning name changes of World Heritage properties, and to reflect them throughout the text of the Statements, in consultation with States Parties and Advisory Bodies;

9.  Finally requests the States Parties to provide support to the World Heritage Centre for translation of the adopted Statements of Outstanding Universal Value into English or French respectively, and finally requests the Centre to upload these onto its web-pages.

Draft Decision:  37 COM 7B.94

The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37COM/7B,

2.  Takes note of the comprehensive information submitted by the State Party but regrets that the information was submitted almost a year after having been requested;

3.  Deeply regrets that the shopping mall was constructed, given its negative impact on the setting and skyline of Castro;

4.  Requests the State Party to invite, as soon as possible, a joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission to address the following elements:

a)  The definition of the characteristics of the wider setting for all component parts, in relation to the Outstanding Universal Value of the property, and put in place appropriate protection, including the review of the buffer zones and regulatory measures for the protection of the setting of the Churches of Chiloe,

b)  The review of the current protection and management arrangements for the property and the required measures to improve the legal framework and permit granting processes between types of preservation and institutional competences,

c)  The update and enforcement of legislative and regulatory measures to ensure that the defined characteristics of the wider setting are adequately protected and that new development takes into account the visual relations between the inscribed property and its setting,

d)  The measures to mitigate the visual impact of the Castro shopping mall on the component part, including the consideration to partially demolish the upper stories so that the building does not exceed the 10 meter height indicated in the existing regulations as well as other measures to improve the facades to better integrate it with the existing setting;

5.  Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

 

Report year: 2013
Chile
Date of Inscription: 2000
Category: Cultural
Criteria: (ii)(iii)
Documents examined by the Committee
arrow_circle_right 37COM (2013)
Exports

* : The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).

** : All mission reports are not always available electronically.


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