Cultural facilities (such as, festivals, art venues and historic destinations, etc.) have a ripple effect in the economic sense, implying that it can help generate other economic non-cultural activities by attracting visitors, people, and tourist who spend in restaurants, hotels and public transport, etc. In this way, cultural destinations act as a catalyst for investment and activity. Cultural districts cannot perform without cultural and other non-cultural supporting activities. This mixed-use economy should be diverse, preferably at the small and medium scale where the target is to boost the economics of the area and helps create self-sustaining growth. This notion can also facilitate a public-private partnership so at the same time the public sector provides cultural services; private sector contributes with other private galleries and supporting services.

Cultural activities have the capacity to create a night-time economy and bring the revitalized areas to life. This is noticeable in many areas that were obsolete and by the injection of such activities; they could return to its active role. It is advisable for city planners and governments to promote and manage the night-time economy as part of their approach to supporting the economic contribution of cultural activities. This entails paying attention to managing security, accessibility, and transportation.

It is apparent from the previous discussion that culture can help to provide the critical mass in amount and time-scale of the activity, which facilitates the social and economic performance of an area. This can be achieved by encouraging a range of activities and mix of uses in an area, which reinforces each other and help to increase confidence in an area through a purposeful utilization of properties for cultural uses. Consequently, cultural quarters are created.

Culture also has a significant role in providing the content for activity to create lively urban areas (Montgomery, 2003). Events in public spaces, parks, and squares help bring meaning and, therefore, improve the competitiveness of those spaces. In this way, culture in association with the built-up environment helps to create a sense of meaning and identity of the place.

It is critical that the urban public realm has a local identity that creates its distinctiveness and remarkable character of its spaces, squares, and streets. If rooted in the cultural backgrounds of the area, architecture and urban design can develop special human experience, vigorous economies and more sensitive integration with communities. Urban design needs to have a cultural conscience to succeed. This intertwining of culture and urban public realm will result in positive articulation of the city through new developments, revitalization schemes, and public art.

Cultural activities, if exist, have the potential to transform the place from a mere location to a destination where people want to visit, live, and work. It is worth mentioning that successful branded cities were able to market their history, culture, quality of place, diversity, lifestyle, etc. Cultural venues can radically affect the city brand as in the example of Guggenheim in Bilbao - Spain has largely affected the image and the economics of the City.

Entrepreneurial Strategies favors enhancing the economic growth rather than social goals. In this process, city governments try to adapt their built environments and economies to compete for the emergent industries of the “new economy” such as cultural tourism, performing arts, and information technologies. The process was adopted earlier to revitalize the abundant parts of the cities that have been ignored for a long time due to the de-industrialization process. The strategy was seeking to inject new investments by creating retail and mixed-use spaces in historically themed environments, the construction of flagship cultural complexes competing for attention. This approach has its roots in the in economic agglomeration theory which can be described as a geographical concentration of firms within an industrial sector. Firms locating within a cluster benefit from shared infrastructure, resources, and networks, as well as a shared image for branding and other general economies of scale.

The goal was to bring a new enhanced image to attract new capital, visitors, and tourists. Due to their apparent economic success and marketing competencies, a wide range of cultural activities has become a key factor of many urban redevelopment and revitalization projects. Critics argue that entrepreneurial initiatives favoring the private sector over the public sector are better as they concentrate more on building the city for visitors and affluent residents rather than the whole population (Eisinger 2000; Zukin 1995). However, a balanced relationship between the public and a private will certainly lead to more comprehensive consequences.

Creative class strategies focus on the quality of life and lifestyle facilities that attract the “creative class” – a wide-ranging group of people who are highly educated workers and “knowledge-based professionals” including such diverse of professionals as software designers, writers, artists, architects. Florida’s “creative capital theory” argues “creative people power regional economic growth and these people prefer places that are innovative, diverse, and tolerant” (Florida, 2008). He, further, explains that a specific type of human capital, the ‘creatives’, are important ingredients for the economic growth. For him, creativity or ideas are key economic goods (Florida, 2002). Other keywords behind the Creative City concept, besides the mainly economic outline which creativity and culture are seen in, is the promotion of growth - understood as a growth of the Creative Class and with it, economic growth - and the competition among cities.

Landry (2008) suggests that the concept of the creative class and creativity affects the urban realm and have become its dominant paradigm. For Florida “place is the key economic and social organizing unit of our time, making the quality of a place essential” (Florida, 2002). Establishing a creative environment is becoming a key factor for the economic success of cities. Citizens become more demanding for quality of life facilities in their cities. Cultural and entertainment consumption and urban amenities are increasingly important for enhancing locations turning the city into a vibrant destination (Clark, 2004).

Progressive strategies concentrate on providing a wide spreading of benefits among people. Success here is not measured regarding economic returns, but rather its impact regarding its social benefits such as reducing the economic and social differences and increase the overall standards of living and the encouragement of citizens’ participation. Progressive strategies seek to extract public benefits from the private sector. Progressive cultural strategies seek to broaden access to and participation in the arts, support local cultural production and utilize the arts to strengthen community identity and to revitalize disadvantaged neighborhoods. City governments have established initiatives to fund arts and culture education, turn obsolete properties into community cultural centers, and encourage attention to local heritage and culture (Grodach & Loukaitou‐Sideris, 2007)

The cultural district may gain attraction through its unique urban and architectural configuration, which plays a considerable role in accommodating a diversity of cultural and creative activities. Historic urban settings, for instance, with significant forms of symbolic meaning, are a potential territory for encompassing cultural and creative activities. The articulation between individuals and the physical setting of the place contribute to facilitating the transfer of different forms of cultural production and consumption.

The physical component of cultural districts such as buildings, places, spaces, streets …etc., appear to be essential. It provides the local milieu with physical venues capable of circulating and transmitting cultural activities. They provide suitable opportunities for the people to exchange ideas, knowledge, and creativity.

Montgomery (2003) argues that a place which has good cultural activity but lacks a good urban design and form will not count as a cultural quarter in the sense of being a destination which attracts everyday users and visitors, but rather a place (most likely) of only cultural production detached from the arena of consumption. This means that cultural quarters, and indeed the wider notion of city creative economies, cannot be considered in segregation from the geographical setting and the characteristics of its urban qualities.

The competition between places entails the creation of meaning behind the mere existence of its physical fabric. Incorporating both tangible and intangible elements, and profoundly affecting the social image, reputation, and representation, culture becomes the main interest of this time. Fanzini & Rotaru (2012) argue that cultural heritage is no longer considered as a consumer good, but rather a capital resource and asset that can be utilized in the process of producing goods and services and consequently contribute to the local development. Hence, it is not surprising that places within the city are becoming more appealing by involving important intellectual components to their physical context.

If the physical settings appear as formal meeting points, events offer a key platform for culture producers to offer their work and interact with the community members. Events can bring a wider recognition on both the local and global scene. The scale and scope of a specific event may increase and lead the community to plan further specific events such as public festivals, fairs, competitions that may reach a wide spectrum of audience and individuals. These events are vital to revitalizing the creative process by allowing cultural districts to new exposures. In turn, these events stimulate a process of facilitating the interaction between potential producers or consumers (Cohende et al., 2011).

Cultural districts have a role to play as incubators for creativity, innovation, and quality, which can lead to bringing economic benefits. They also succeed in attracting tourists, visitors, new business opportunities and mixed-use economic activities. Thus, they are a sound strategic investment for boosting the economic fortunes of the city, throughout the recognition that culture could be facilitated commercially. Understanding how cities can offer a desirable milieu for its individuals and firms to pursue their creative and intellectual activities has become a key issue in today’s economies. Cohende et al. (2011) argue that Cities can play a remarkable role in defining the road map for creativity both locally and globally. However, many questions remain as to how cities can effectively utilize human creativity and benefit from their cultural potential.

The existence of mutually shared objectives between stakeholders is one of the most important factors that support the cultural district development process. There should be a local administrative arrangement committed to facilitate the integration between cultural activities, urban settings, and target audience. The local authorities have to provide incentives, community support, and regulations to facilitate the implementation of the cultural district and to ensure its continued success.

United States’ cultural districts are distinct areas, selected or certified by state governments that employ different cultural resources to stimulate economic development and promote interactions between culture, arts and other businesses (NASAA, 2012). State cultural districts have developed into pivotal areas that are characterized by many types of businesses, yield a high quality of life for its residents, attract visitors and provoke civic pride. Cultural district programs are, currently, established in fourteen different states and more states are expected to consider the implementation of similar policies. There are more than 200 state-designated cultural districts, and more new districts are evolving every year (Stubbs R., 2014). Cultural districts are among strategies states have implemented to foster their economies while achieving many other social benefits. The anticipated results of cultural districts spread beyond the arts and cultural sector to benefit all members of the community. Those goals may include:

For the sake of a successful outcome, many state agencies have been participating in collaboration in state cultural district programs such as historic preservation, department of economic development, division of cultural affairs, department of tourism, state Main Street office (may be government or nonprofit), and small business administration.

The concept of cultural quarters was established in the UK during the mid-1980s. These were perceived as creative milieus that are as focal places in cities – quarters or industrial districts – where economic development of the creative industries, the arts, and other cultural economy of cities are focused to achieve trading exchange, agglomeration economies, and city diversity. Recently, urban cultural quarters are considered as mechanisms for urban revitalization. This was, intensively, discussed in the urban literature, especially on theories of city growth, urban design and economic development. Cultural quarters are usually perceived as part of a broader strategy interlinking cultural and economic development. This is usually interlinked to the development or revitalization of a selected urban area, in which mixed-use urban development is to be encouraged, and in response, the public urban realm is to be rearranged and enhanced to adopt with changes. In other words, cultural quarters opt to combine strategies for consumption of culture and arts with urban place-making.

John Montgomery, with Urban Cultures Limited, devised their first cultural quarter plan 1991. At that time, the Irish government appointed him to advise on the establishment of a suggested cultural quarter in the Temple Bar area of Dublin. This remarkable initiative is now viewed in the literature as a pioneering modern urban planning initiative. This work has been followed by other similar projects in many cities, including Glasgow's Merchant City, Manchester's Northern Quarter, Grainger Town in Newcastle, Belfast North side and East Gateshead, the Sheffield Cultural Industries Quarter, and Dundee’s emerging cultural quarter.

The case of Temple Bar is perhaps the most prominent as it dates back more than 25 years ago when the area witnessed neglect and decline in its property values which resulted in an imperative process of revitalization. By 1990, Temple Bar had many neglected buildings, vacant sites, problems of poor, remains of business activity and many buildings which were declining. Businesses, culture and arts organizations the area organized themselves to establish the Temple Bar Development Council as early as 1989, and started to raise the issue of the need to revitalize the area as a cultural quarter. The strategy, which was adopted to accomplish this, was a combination of cultural led urban revitalization, physical renewal, and local economic development, particularly in connection with the cultural activities. An early strategic development framework for the area was prepared by Urban Cultures Limited in 1990/91 (Montgomery, 2004). This recommended the following key interventions:

Cultural writers acknowledge the importance of Temple Bar as a notable example of using culture and design to re-establish an area's economy and place-making. They referred to Temple Bar as a strategy of utilizing cultural assets to attract people and stimulate economic benefits.

Another district in Cairo, which offers a good cultural potentiality, is the pottery district of Al-Fustat in Misr al-Qadima area which represents an example of a cultural production district in Cairo, among many others, as an industrial, cultural district using low technologies. Al-Fustat has been renowned for its pottery making, the distinct of its traditional design and the creativeness of its artisans. Pottery production has marked the cultural spirit of this district.

In response to its air pollution caused by the use of primitive methods, the Egyptian government decided to close the district's pottery kilns in 2003. This resulted in threatening the potters who trace their origins to the establishment of al-Fustat in AD 641. In response to this, an arts and crafts center project was initiated to include modern kilns and commercial spaces as part of a new potters' village. Another project was also designed for the study of the traditional crafts of pottery and ceramics. The building consists of lecture areas, workshops, , exhibition galleries, offices, a multi-purpose hall, and rooms for artists. The center has become a catalyst for the revitalization of Al Fustat and an important training destination. (Nassar, H. & Hewitt, R., 2012)

The district is located near the Coptic Museum and historic churches in Old Cairo; The location is featured by its old churches and other heritage buildings. Buildings such as The Hanging Church, Abu Sarga, the Church of Saint Barbara the Martyr, the Church of the Virgin Mary, The Greek Orthodox Church Mar Girgis, The Church of the Monk Mar Girgis, the Fortress of Babylon, the Coptic Museum and the Ben Ezra Synagogue are all considered among the super touristic destinations of Cairo.

The NMEC is the first museum of civilization in Egypt is also located in the district, overlooking the Ain El-Seera Lake. The NMEC is planned to display the Egyptian civilization through different eras from prehistoric times to the present day and highlight the country’s tangible and intangible heritage.

The realization of the cultural significance of this area of the City has attracted the attention of the non-governmental bodies to contribute to providing another venue to the area. Darb 1718 is a non-governmental organization founded in 2008. It provides different types of spaces for a variety of cultural and artistic events. Darb 1718 has one theater, two exhibition halls, stages, open-air cinema, outdoor spaces in addition to the residential part to offer accommodation facility for guest and artists coming from abroad. The center offers different artistic workshops, cultural events, and training programs for young artists and provides them with spaces to display their work together with professional artists. It involves the Egyptian creative class with the local and international art and culture field. Darb 1718 is the gathering point and a platform for displaying Cairo's Contemporary Art.

Al Fustat- old Cairo is showing another opportunity to invest in culture for the sake of developing the whole district. The case here is providing many cultural venues but needs more physical interventions to positively change and align the public realm with the cultural offerings of the place.

The key consequences of the designation of districts as a cultural district can contribute to the change and the overall enhancement of the physical content, activities and the image of the place. It will also yield an opportunity for an active partnership between the local community organizations, and governmental bodies. This can offer effective governance of the area and engagement in the regenerating activities of the place.

Major cultural activities at Al-Fustat are mixed between selling goods with traditional and artistic cultural contents, besides the touristic and cultural services offered by both the Coptic churches and museum with the recent existence of The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. The future of Al-Fustat depends on both the private sector activities and the public involvement in determining the framework of private sector activities through ordinances, building regulations, infrastructure provision and urban public realm enhancements such as open spaces, squares, pedestrians, and street installments.

Goals of thinking to involve such initiatives of cultural districts include: revitalizing theses designated areas of the city, offering evening activities with extended hours during which the area is used, providing facilities for cultural activities and organization, enhancing employment, and connecting culture more intimately with community development.

Combining both cultural and urban planning is a key element in this strategy. Streets, parks and open spaces, for example, could be perceived as tracts of the built environment. However, those same urban elements might become the venue of film making, a site of musical performance, or for displaying visual or performing arts and so on. The annual Citadel Music Festival of Cairo is a good example of celebrating art and culture within an environment, which offers historic associations of Saladin Citadel. The proposed strategy is suggested to include the following stages:

Realizing the opportunity: which consider in broad terms the full range of the cultural resources as well as its interrelation with the physical environment as a milieu. In this phase, all conditions, issues, and needs should be identified in the local area concerned. Cultural mapping is the prime identification of the cultural features in the designated area. Mapping is a tool for pinpointing creative and cultural assets. The focus of mapping is to compile information of cultural resources that support decision-making and planning in cultural development or revitalization.

Identifying the stakeholders: the coordination between concerned agencies, organizations, and departments of government to affirm that relevant programs, public expenditures and regulatory process are effectively connected, and focused on culture as the key component. The previous literature review shows that building governance capacity requires institutions of collaboration.

Justifying the strategy: this considers taking into account the economic and social impact of the cultural planning. The identification of all the consequences such as the provision of Job opportunities, the creation of more attractive places based on the cultural dimension and the attraction of visitors and tourists. According to (Montgomery, 2003) changes brought by the cultural district designation should be analyzed and assessed in terms of the district image, cultural and other related activities and meaning.

The key objectives of the cultural district of Al Fustat are to:

The cultural district designation and implementation strategy involve a variety of tools – both essential and complementary – to fulfill its goals and objectives. These are described below.