Decision 44 COM 7A.32

Historic Centre of Vienna (Austria) (C 1033)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/21/44.COM/7A.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 43 COM 7A.45, adopted at its 43rd session (Baku, 2019),
3. Welcomes the significant progress made by the State Party in implementing previous Committee decisions and progressing towards the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger and, in particular:
   1. The programme for protection of World Heritage announced by the Austrian Government in January 2020, including anchoring of World Heritage properties in the Austrian legal system, sustainable protection and preservation of cultural heritage, and commitment to UNESCO Conventions on Cultural Diversity and the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage,
   2. Progress towards completion of a new Management Plan for the property,
   3. Extension of the coverage of the roof cadastre and its proposed implementation process through the new Management Plan;
4. Also welcomes the decision not to proceed with the proposed Heumarkt – Ice Skating Club – Vienna Concert Hall tower block as planned, further welcomes the process initiated to develop and evaluate alternative variants for the design and requests the State Party to ensure that the proposed additional visual study assesses the new design and potential impact on the property, having regard to the findings of the 2018 High Level Joint UNESCO/ICOMOS Advisory mission, and that a new Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) is prepared using precisely the same data, methodology and format of the 2019 HIA;
5. Also requests the State Party to ensure that the new Management Plan for the property is submitted for review by the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies prior to its finalisation and implementation, and that it addresses the findings and recommendations of the 2018 Advisory mission;
6. Reminds the State Party of the Committee’s previous request to pursue legislative protection for the Schwarzenberg Gardens and to submit final plans and designs for the Wien Museum to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies;
7. Further requests that the current moratorium be maintained on new developments or planning measures which may impact upon attributes that contribute to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, pending completion of the new Management Plan, the implementation of the proposed corrective measures, and consequent amendments to planning controls;
8. Commends the State Party on the elaboration of the Desired state of conservation for removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) and related corrective measures, and particularly the productive collaborative process with the World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS;
9. Adopts the DSOCR developed by the State Party in consultation with the World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS and all stakeholders, as presented in Document WHC/21/44.COM/7A.Add and urges the State Party to proceed with the implementation of the corrective measures;
10. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2022, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, including progress achieved in implementing the corrective measures for the DSOCR, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 45th session;
11. Decides to retain Historic Centre of Vienna (Austria) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.