Urban Quarters
“Essen for the Ruhr” will be going into town suburbs to meet the people where they are – at their doorsteps. Using concrete changes, the Capital of Culture will be encouraging people to rethink their immediate environment and opening up new paths in urban life.
Creative Quarters
The Lohberg colliery,Dinslaken, Photo: Markus Gehling
Urban qualities and creative quarters are two factors that contribute to creating urbane
spaces in a metropolis. The dynamics of the interplay between art, culture, business and
education can provide decisive impulses in this process. How can you create these dynamics?
By means of deliberate targeting, and in close cooperation with those affected. This is the starting point for “Creative Quarters”. The Capital of Culture as the mediator and promoter, will bring together persons in the creative economy with three different departments of the town or city that wishes to optimise the growth conditions for the creative economy – the officers responsible for culture and economy, urban planning, marketing and business promotion. The “Creative Quarters” project intends to present selected urban initiatives in the Ruhr – places that can act as experiential models for the urban development process of a metropolis in the
making. The Dortmund “U” site, the Viktoria Quarter in Bochum, and Unna-Massen are already established examples of ideal models.