A possible project. On history, preservation and abandonment

Why do we consider some examples of architecture as untouchable? Why should we get rid of things that make us uncomfortable? Why not soften restrictions instead of insist on keeping a collection of regulations? A specific urban element is taken as subject in an attempt to answer these questions: Montevideo's heritage city center. Throughout the years there have been multiple plans for the neighborhood. But perhaps due to their overly ambitious character, they have proven to be ineffective. An outlook capable of assessing the area through its multiple fragments and contrasts is called for. Notions of heritage are put into question. The impossibility of coming up with a unifying theory is assumed, its purpose soon becoming obsolete. The idea of “Suspended judgement” in which no story is any more valid than any other, is incorporated. A different take on heritage should be accompanied by an alternative way to look at regulations. The proposal trust that architecture can be a force capable of transforming the existing support, while searching for "ad hoc" measures that can produce cities "à la carte". Our research attempts to explore alternatives to enable the short-term development of a historic center in an emerging country.