Decision 43 COM 7A.45

Historic Centre of Vienna (Austria) (C 1033)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/7A.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 42 COM 7A.5, adopted at its 42nd session (Manama, 2018);
3. Welcomes the three-stage process implemented by the State Party with the City of Vienna and notes the commitment of the State Party and of the city of Vienna to ensure the conservation of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, and consequently urges all parties to support and pursue:
   1. The proposed two year moratorium on all planning measures which may jeopardize the OUV of the property, especially the Heumarkt Neu project,
   2. Actions to address the findings and recommendations of the Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) for the Heumarkt Neu project, including negotiations with the developer to identify and implement mitigation measures which avoid adverse heritage impact,
   3. The recommendations of the 2018 Advisory mission, including:
      1. Reviewing and revising the management structure of the property at the city and national level,
      2. Undertaking a comprehensive review of the current state of conservation of the property, in consultation with the World Heritage Centre, the Advisory Bodies (ICOMOS and ICCROM) and national and local stakeholders,
      3. Preparing a new Management Plan for the property, based on identification, description and mapping of tangible and intangible attributes of the property,
      4. Assessing the Belvedere Stöckl redevelopment project and other projects currently being executed or planned through an HIA process before they are approved and/or implemented, and halting works until this occurs,
      5. Pursuing legislative protection for the Schwarzenberg Gardens,
      6. Implementing a comprehensive process for continued monitoring and evaluation that is focused on retention of OUV while sustaining the economic growth of the City of Vienna;
4. Reiterates its concern that the current planning controls for the property, and the critical level of urban development reached since inscription with resulting cumulative impacts, require new tools to guide the development process towards sustainable development that protects the attributes which contribute to the OUV of the property;
5. Requests the State Party, based on the findings of the HIA for the Heumarkt Neu project and the 2018 Advisory mission recommendations, to facilitate the preparation of a Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) and a related set of corrective measures and timeframe for their implementation, addressing Decisions 40 COM 7B.49, 41 COM 7B.42, and 42 COM 7A.5, and the recommendations of the 2012, 2015 and 2018 missions, in consultation with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, for adoption by the Committee;
6. Encourages the State Party to support and facilitate appropriate measures to manage and conserve the historic roof constructions in the Historic Centre of Vienna as an important attribute of the property, through appropriate extensions to the roof cadastre, a moratorium on rooftop conversions until appropriate tools and approvals processes are in place, and also requests that any such changes be referred to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, prior to adoption and implementation;
7. Further requests the State Party to submit, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, final plans for the Wien Museum and Winterthur Building, and detailed plans and supporting documentation for the Belvedere Stöckl redevelopment project, and any other proposed developments within the Schwarzenberg Gardens, for review by the Advisory Bodies, prior to implementation or the making of any irreversible decisions;
8. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2020, 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 44th session in 2020;
9. Decides to retain Historic Centre of Vienna (Austria) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.