ABSTRACT

This chapter talks about how to strengthen the core areas in small and mid-sized towns. When one thinks about the horror and destruction of great wars, several cities have sustained damage come to mind. Battle of Stalingrad, Hiroshima, and Dresden stand out immediately. Ypress origin dates back to the first century BC. During successive centuries the town grew to 40,000 inhabitants and became an important textile manufacturing post. Cloth Hall, built in the thirteenth century to serve as the main market and warehouse, is evidence of the towns wealthy past. Standing in the Grote Market Square that faces the Cloth Hall and nearby St. Martins Cathedral, it was hard to imagine that this place was once bombed to rubble. Waterfronts are popular places with tourists and many have played a pivotal role in turning the town's fortune around. Towns like Honfleur, France, are best known for making their waterfronts an international attraction.