摘要：The paper develops the theses of D.O. Shvidkovsky, interpreting the evolution of the development of St. Petersburg as a successive change in a number of concepts of urban development. Using the example of the Spit of Vasilievsky Island, the main models are highlighted, their radical focus and the overall scale of implementation, characteristic of St. Petersburg, are emphasized. The fundamental discrepancy of the target settings of the urban planning process at three main stages of development of the historical city center is recorded. It is noted that modern urban planning policy does not take into account the damage caused to its landscapes in the 1840-1910s, when the openness and transparency of the ensemble of central squares were lost, and the Collegiate Square on the Spit was liquidated. The relevance of a return to a multifactorial environmental approach in the formation of urban open spaces today is emphasized.
