How to regenerate an urban area through new community venues, refurbished public spaces and a new narrative of the neighbourhood?

In early June, Eutropian’s Levente Polyák was in Den Helder for the 3rd Transnational Meeting of the URBACT Innovation Transfer Network Daring Cities.

The network, building on Ravenna’s experience of the collaborative urban regeneration of the Darsena area, concentrates on co-producing new spaces and services with local initiatives, supported by new narratives about the participating cities’ focus areas and evidence-based definitions of quality of life.

Besides witnessing the signing of the Vulnerable Neighbourhoods Covenant by key actors of Den Helder’s civil society, social services and municipal departments, the visit explored Den Helder’s focus neighbourhood Visbuurt and its new community venues, as well initiatives to tell the story of Den Helder’s relationship with the seaand engage youth in local sea-related crafts such as shipbuilding.