can we use 'assign' like this?

In my article, there's a part that I want to say that we should keep some of our old buildings because of its historical value and implement our city development plans in another area. so is this sentence correct or not:

• we should assign a special and limited area for these old buildings.

Solution 1:

Instead of "assign" I would use "designate", given by Lexico as

designate
VERB

1.1 Officially give a specified status or name to.
Example: The Wye Valley is designated an area of outstanding natural beauty.

The phrase for protected land used in UK is "a conservation area", given by Lexico as

conservation area
NOUN
British

An area of notable environmental or historical interest or importance which is protected by law against undesirable changes.
Example: If a property is within a conservation area then any development needs to be carefully assessed by planning authorities.

So I would write

We should designate a conservation area to protect these old buildings.