Abstract

The topic of waterfront transformation is a vast and challenging issue, which in small and medium-sized cities is still unexplored. With growing global interest in the matter of regeneration of city-water relationship and increasing public awareness of the value of waterfront public spaces, actions to transform abandoned waterfront areas have been undertaken in many Polish port cities. City of Elbląg, located in northern Poland, is an interesting example in which historic waterfront is undergoing process of transformation. The article presents the case of waterfront transformation in this medium-sized city, focusing on historic part of the waterfront, which has been significantly destroyed during World War. The article analyses the land use of the waterfront area, the usage of the wharf, the level of access to the water and municipal policy towards waterfront development in order to better understand the current state of waterfront area and water-land relation, to identify its weak points and to indicate possible future directions for its development. The research reveals a significant disproportion in development of eastern and western riverside, underdevelopment of large part of waterfront area and lack of coherent, comprehensive municipal strategy towards waterfront along the river. This lack of planning is not conducive to strengthening the water-land relationship. The article identifies key opportunities and threats for central waterfront and general directions for sustainable development of the city.

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