Heritage conservation in Alexandria,Egypt: managing tensions between ownership and legislation

This paper examines the realities facing the heritage conservation system in Egypt, with a special focus on the relationship between heritage conservation legislation and the ownership of listed buildings in Alexandria. The objective of this paper is to identify the reasons for owners’ objections to the heritage conservation law and their motivation to exclude their properties from the heritage list. The ways in which owners have made use of gaps found in the legislation to exclude their buildings from the list were also examined. Furthermore, channels of communication between heritage conservation authorities and landlords, the exclusion of owners in the decision-making process, the legal aspects of heritage legislation and the assessment of their success are explored.