Integrated, Multi-Agency Approach to the Preservation of Venetian Palaces

The palaces of Venice are historical monuments which are constantly being modified to keep them current with present-day standards so that they remain usable. When a modification to a palace is requested, it is studied by several government agencies and preservation organizations to ensure that the requested modification does not jeopardize the historical integrity of the structure. However, each of the agencies works off of different sources to acquire information necessary to reach an appropriate decision. The sources may contain similar information, but it is information that is not always shared. With the purpose of aiding the City of Venice in preserving the palaces, the goal of our project was to combine the resources of all the agencies and integrate them into one easily accessible, easily searchable computerized database. The intention was that the digitization and centralization of all the data would make them more accessible and utilizable to the various city departments. Five different agencies contributed records and information on palaces, which we verified, organized and linked through the database. Analysis of the process for obtaining a building permit confirmed that our database will help make it more efficient. Besides being a comprehensive source of information, the database establishes a standard institutional link between the different departments to share information and cooperate with each other more effectively, thus streamlining their efforts towards the preservation of palaces.