The decline and revitalization of vitality in historic districts of small- and medium-sized cities undergoing rapid urbanization is a frontier issue in global heritage conservation and urban regeneration. Using the East Street Historic District in Mengzi, Yunnan, as a case study, this study proposes a “space–function–time” coupling framework. Topological accessibility is quantified through space syntax metrics—Integration Value (2021) and Integration Value (2025), as well as Choice Value (2021) and Choice Value (2025)—while functional aggregation is represented by POI kernel density analysis. A “Deviation Degree–Change in Deviation Degree” model is developed to track the dynamic evolution before and after the implementation of the conservation plan (2021–2025). The findings indicate that (1) the linear correlation between Integration Value and POI density decreases from a moderate level (r = 0.42) in 2021 to a weak correlation (r = 0.32) in 2025, revealing that the spatial–functional coordination mechanism in small- and medium-sized city historic districts is considerably more fragile than in large cities; (2) Identifying streets with abnormal deviations: The primary street, Renmin Middle Road, exhibits a deviation degree as high as 4.160 due to excessive commercial aggregation, resulting in a “high accessibility–high load” imbalance. The secondary street, Dashu Street, although demonstrating a relatively high Integration Value (0.663), shows a “high accessibility–low vitality” condition due to insufficient functional facilities; (3) the Deviation Degree–Change in Deviation Degree model accurately identifies High Deviation Streets, Medium Deviation Streets, and Low Deviation Streets, and provides quantitative thresholds for planning feedback. This study introduces the Deviation Degree–Change in Deviation Degree model for the first time into the evaluation of historic district renewal in small- and medium-sized cities, establishing a closed-loop “diagnosis–intervention–reassessment” tool. The proposed framework offers both a methodological and operational paradigm for precision-oriented urban regeneration in historic districts.
Wu et al. (Fri,) studied this question.