Static & Kinetic City

“Today in our urban areas there exists two cities – the static and kinetic…the static city represented through its

architecture and by monuments built in permanent materials…and the kuttcha city, built of temporary

material; processions and festivals form its spectacle, and the very expression of the city is temporal in nature, in

constant flux.” -- Rahul Mehrotra

Kala Ghoda, South Mumbai

 

Edward VII on his black horse

Call for Conservation

• Urban Design Research Institute: architects surveyed traffic patterns & land use

• largest concentration of contemporary art galleries in country

• Promoted as art district to drive process of restoration, though historically never considered one

The Initiative

•Kala Ghoda citizens’ association: 1998

•Annual arts festival: fundraising & awareness

•new signage, st. furniture and amenities, re-deployment of gardens, parking lots; renovation of major landmarks

Corporate sponsorship: HSBC

•Festival: 2001 onwards

•David Sassoon Library

•Elphinstone College

Restoration of Elphinstone

-pollution & weathering deteriorated limestone

-1st citizen group to restore gov’t building

-State Ed. Dept, Public Works, & Kala Ghoda

-water misting

-Heritage Management

The future

• De-listing of Grade III Heritage sites: Bandra

• Limited corporate (Tata Group, Aga Khan Foundation, Oberoi) & state gov’t support

• 3,600 monuments• Citizens’ awareness• NGO’s/gov’t: illegalities

& corruption • Empower local bodies

“tiger w/o teeth”