Planning for the future; towards a sustainable design and land use of an ancient flooded military defence line

In a time of increasing pressure and increasing demands on space a critical view is needed in order to preserve our cultural heritage. Mere preservation or restoration is not an approach that assures the survival of heritage in the future. In The Netherlands a new approach is being developed by which cultural heritage is integrated into physical planning and the development of new functions. In addition to contemplating on the theoretical advantages and disadvantages of the approach, this article shows an example of a successful participatory approach by which a landscape plan was designed for an area around a historical military defence line. The defence line is one of the first of the kind and originates from the Dutch War for Independence (1568–1648). The structure is threatened by present spatial developments. In co-operation with stakeholders a vision was formulated that formed a framework for future developments. The project showed that preservation through development is an approach that has great potential and should in many cases be preferred to the more common approach of protection and restoration of relics. The new approach provides more support for the preservation of cultural heritage and doesn’t block other social developments.