Complex strategies of urban rehabilitationThe combined effect of creativity, public space and gentrification

Madalena Perestrelo de Lemos

Extended Abstract

Thesis to obtain the Master of Science Degree degree in

Architecture

October 2014

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ABSTRACT

the evolution of the concept and the policies. The second part focuses in the city of Lisbon, contextualizing the object of study, the Largo do Intendente. Finally, the ongoing process in this area will be studied, starting by framing it in the programs and plans in place in this zone. An analysis of the different dynamics and synergies that contribute to the re-habilitation and reversion of the space will then be conducted, namely in terms of the public space and strategies based

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This dissertation showed the importance of the combination between these dynamics and the public space to the

and also of the participation of the associations and local population in the process. The main questions that have arisen from the dissertation are related to the integration of the surrounding residents in the activities that take place, the sustainability of the intervention in social and economic terms, and its connection with the rest of the city. This work aims to contribute to one of the biggest challenges posed to the urban rehabilitation nowadays: the integration, the compatibility and the coordination between the different sectorial areas and disciplinary knowledge.

Keywords:

Currently, the processes of urban rehabilitation address a growing number of objectives that go beyond the preservation of the buildings and the public space, namely the integration of social, cultural and sustainable principles. That way, the urban rehabilitation became a complex urban development process and a central topic in the urban policies

integrated and multidimensional than before. The purpose of this dissertation is to frame and understand the complex

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00. INTRODUCTION

The urban rehabilitation has currently a central role in the revitalization of the cities, reinforcing its cohesion and competitiveness. It appeared in the beginning as a technical intervention in buildings, becoming nowadays a complex and integrative urban development process.The main objective of this work is to understand and analyse the effects and potential of the adoption of inte-grative and multidimensional strategies of rehabilitation in the regeneration of depressed central areas, having as case study the Largo do Intendente, in Lisbon. To this end, we outline the following objectives:

1. Contribute to a critical evaluation of the multidimen-sional processes of socio-urban reversion.

2. Determine the instruments (political, economic, finan-cial and cultural) of the inversion/reversion of these time and recessive spaces.

3. Study the combined effect of creativity, public space and gentrification.

4. Understand how architecture and urban design artic-ulate with the social dynamics.

The literature review was the basis of the theoretical investigation, and was fundamental to the update of the concepts and dynamics that affect the phenomenon of the urban rehabilitation and consequently to the way that the practical case was studied. The practical re-search was first based in the literature review and later on in direct observation, with photographic records, and collection of information in situ, with the objective of understanding how the concept of urban rehabilitation was applied. Semi-structured interviews were also con-ducted, which contribute to this study, since they pres-ent different visions and a global look into this process.

01. THEORETICAL DISCUSSION

The urban rehabilitation was born from the need for heritage conservation in the nineteenth-century, with the acknowledgment of the interest of certain monu-ments as architectural heritage, given that until this time these were only considered “historical monuments”, as Françoise Choay states (Choay, 1999). The Italian the-oretical Gustavo Giovannoni (1873-1947) was respon-sible for the first integrative theories of rehabilitation, defending the preservation of the old areas in an inte-grated point of view, due to its morphology, scale and artistic and historic value. The Athens Charter, adopted after the IV International Congress of Modern Architec-ture (CIAM) in 1933, defines the guiding principles of the interventions, from the urban and historical heritage points of view.

The II World War, that took place between 1939 and 1945, generated diverse social, economic and political transformations, which modified the configuration of several European cities, partly or totally destroyed by the War. This way, investments in the reconstruction of those cities took place, which generated two move-ments. On one hand, the affected areas were demolished and substituted by modern buildings which, most of the times, were not in accordance with the existing urban design. On the other hand, the expansion of the cities to the peripheries started to take place.

The rehabilitation was exclusively associated to the buildings with heritage interest, due to its historical, so-cial, archeologic or scientific value, and did not include all the buildings of the old areas. This rehabilitation did not take into account the socio-economic development of the affected areas, but only the physical intervention. In the 1980s, that line of thought would be modified, since that heritage is valued as collective memory, adopting a revitalization policy based on an integrated rehabilita-tion.

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The Council of Europe of 2004 proposed a definition of urban rehabilitation, 30 years after the first definition of that concept:

“Rehabilitation is a medium or long term urban revitaliz-ing or regenerating process. It is above all a political act aimed at improving components of the urban space and improving whole the population’s well-being and quality of life. (…) Rehabilitation therefore forms part of urban project / urban development plan, requiring approach involving all urban policies” (Council of Europe, 2005).

The term rehabilitation itself suggests a wider inter-vention than the simple recovery of the places. In fact, it addresses the rehabilitation of the urban quality, in social, cultural and environmental terms, preserving or restoring the memory of the places (Magalhães, 2008). “The processes of urban rehabilitation today have to re-spond to an increasing number of objectives. In addition to preserve, conserve and take advantage the resources provided by the built heritage, must be responsive to the demands of contemporary life” (Pinho, 2009).

In line with the definitions and most recent proposals, it is possible to verify the contribution of concepts that will influence and contribute to a new approach to ur-ban rehabilitation. Among these are: public space, cre-ativity and gentrification.

02. THE COMBINED EFFECT OF CREATIVITY, PUBLIC SPACE AND GENTRIFICATION

The relationship between urban space and cultural and creative activities has been gaining importance in the recent years due to the logics of regeneration and ur-ban revitalization that follow each other in all the cities. These strategies attract creative classes and activities, generating development of the cities, and competitive-ness, which has been growing due to the current crisis. This crisis can be seen as a challenge, but also as an opportunity to take more innovative and creative ap-proaches, and to define a new design and urban manage-ment, which in ‘normal’ circumstances would be consid-ered too risky.

The role of public space

Several authors consider that public space is the ‘reflec-tion of the society and the portrait of the city’ (Portas et al, 2003), given that the connection of the citizens with the places is very important, as is their participa-tion in the creation and maintenance of those places. This appropriation and use differ according to the time, socio-cultural, political and economic context in which they are inserted. Additionally, this appropriation might not match the use for which it was created, since the behaviour patterns change through time.

In the 1980s, the renovation of the public space becomes an urban policy with major importance, being possible to observe a wide variety of interventions, due to con-text in which they are inserted. However, they all have as common denominator the recognition of the square and the street in their traditional typologies as the most important places in the cities.

Creativity

The relationship between creativity and urban devel-opment has been discussed more intensively since the beginning of the century, gaining more public legitimacy due to the recognition given by several international or-ganizations. Creativity is considered an important factor to the creation of value in the modern economy and to its development. This is transversal to all social prac-tices and has a potential that should be explored with a policy and logic that promote the vitality and com-petitiveness, an impulse to urban development, ranging from economic efficiency to social equity and cultural expression. The concept of Creative Cities, studied by Landry (1948) and Florida (1957), has been widely used in strategies of urban development, adopting initiatives that promote the economic development as a way of increasing the vitality of the cities, and its growth.

Therefore, creativity has an questioning role over the places where we live, creates opportunities through processes, and promotes the mix between cultures and ethnics, motivating individuals to participate in the com-munity, as it will be explained in the case study.

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Gentrification

Associated with the paradigm of the city, previously de-scribed, and to social, economic and cultural changes re-sulting from the rehabilitation operations, the phenom-enon of gentrification appears. This concept was born in London in 1964 and was used to describe the mobility of the middle class to the affluent areas of the same city. This concept concerned mainly the recovery of the de-graded housing stock by a social class that replaces the population that previously lived in the area.

The sociologist Zukin argues that this movement re-flects the urban restructuring resulting from the change in lifestyles, which do not separate the fields of work and leisure as well as work and place of residence. Addition-ally, the growing presence of immigrants has increased the complexity of the processes of urban gentrification.In conclusion, these transformations- the establishment of new residents, new activities and the creation of a new line of thought- confer a new centrality to the spac-es and allow their inclusion in the main dynamics. How-ever, the maintenance of the local social characteristics should be guaranteed, with appropriate mechanisms, namely legal. As we will see in the case study, the bal-ance between the positive and negative impacts of gen-trification is a concern and its governance is sometimes complex.

03. THE PARADIGM OF REHABILI-TATION IN THE CITY OF LISBON

The city of Lisbon had a population boom between 1864 and 1960 from nearly 200.000 to 800.000 people; how-ever the last two decades of the twentieth century are marked by the onset of population loss, since the city lost around 100.000 every ten years, from 800.000 to 500.000 inhabitants. This loss of population is due to the residential transfer of youth to suburban peripheries mostly for economic reasons and to emigration for em-ployment reasons.

The 1980s were marked by a real estate boom, where housing and offices are privileged, and in parallel reha-bilitation operations in historic districts occurred, which were initiated in 1986 by the CML. It is considered that public space has a structural role as generator of urban shape and the interventions were no longer punctual, becoming linear, within a structural and integrative view.

The containment measures for urban gentrification hap-pen at the end of the 1980s however there was no inte-grated policy for the so called “inner cities”. A reduced mobilization and a growing decay of the historic areas are then observed, and a decline in population. The his-toric centre begins to be recovered by the CML in the 1990s, with the creation of the Municipal Department of Urban Rehabilitation (DMRU) defining a policy shift by the CML.

Urban rehabilitation is part of the urban strategy of Lis-bon since 2007, as well as the requalification of public space. This is considered the critical factor of the cur-rent urban regeneration policy and is seen as the driving force for investment in urban rehabilitation.

The current governance systems seek to bring together the different stakeholders of the city and hold them re-sponsible, making them more active in decision-making and reflection of the city. Social participation is seen as critical to the processes and solving problems that re-quire not only material resources, but also cultural and symbolic.

In this sense, the consciousness of the urgency to requalify and revitalize the most decayed, segregated and deserted areas arises, enhancing the richness of the heritage and the cultural and existential identity of each of its neighbourhoods and areas.

04. LARGO DO INTENDENTE

At a time becomes very important reversal of social spaces and urban planning disqualified for cohesion and competitiveness of cities and the possible multiplier ef-fect in other areas of the same, Largo Intendant of look-ing through the urban renewal process that is occurring reinvent -If using complex strategies.

Largo do Intendente is within the territory covered by the current plans in the area of Mouraria. This neigh-bourhood stands out from other areas of the city for its architectural features that identify a time, and the way of occupation of the territory, giving it an identity and its own urban expression. Its Morrish urban grid is one of the oldest in the city and one of the most complexes, due to its irregularity.

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Since late 2011, Mouraria is involved in an urban inter-vention to restore the architectural tissue and reorga-nize the territory at the social and economic level. This action seeks to requalify the equipment, increasing the quality of life, and to introduce new practices in the use and appropriation of public space through artistic and cultural activities and new models of economic devel-opment.

This project is implemented through the National Stra-tegic Reference Framework of Mouraria, which aims at the requalification of public space and rehabilitation of buildings with historic and cultural interest, and the Community Development Program of Mouraria. This is a complement to the first project, prevents risky be-haviours and poverty and drives events and artistic ac-tivities, developing social action projects that encour-age a new form of participation in the public life of the neighbourhood.

The lack of co-responsibility for public space and com-fort that existed in Mouraria changed, with the help of the work of associations and municipal services and ac-tivities that appealed to the common responsibility for public spaces. This way, the requalification of public space is the most visible intervention and is a driver of the ex-pected revitalizing synergy of the neighbourhood.

Largo do Intendente would be consolidated throughout the nineteenth century, gaining greater monumentality in 1824 with the construction of the fountain of Inten-dente, built to supply the very busy area. The Largo has a great cultural value due to the meeting of different cultures and the urban heritage and environmental val-ues that result from the uniqueness of its architectural

surroundings. However, in recent decades, this area has become one of the most decayed sites of the city, visible in social terms and in its buildings.

The area of the Intendente is undergoing a very import-ant intervention to the change in attitude towards the district; however the past of this area, which led people away from living the space, is inevitably still very present in the daily life, since this is still seen as an unsafe place. On the one hand, the safety felt in a space influences its occupation and, on the other hand, it also depends on the population occupying the place. Therefore, the development must be integrated, taking into account the social dynamics, and balancing the continuity of the most authentic experiences with the necessary adaptation to the increasing cultural and touristic demand.

The project of requalification of public space has im-plied a structural intervention that qualifies urban ar-eas, and that is versatile and multifunctional, allowing events, terraces and favouring a certain type of shops and restaurants. This is based on the assumption that, in the short and medium terms, “the introduction of added value to the public space has an impact, inevitably, in the social tissue of the neighbourhood, due to the increase of the conditions of space utilization by current resi-dents, and to the possibility of improving infrastructure and protecting the exceptional natural and environmen-tal conditions present, attract new visitors, revitalizing experience and social interaction of the district, import-ant indicators of the quality of urban life “ (Neves and Gonçalves, 2011). Therefore, the project aims at an inte-grated, sustainable and grounded approach that is linked to the entities involved on site.

Image 01- Pavment and green structure

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Public space plays a central role in the revitalization of this area, given that its requalification provides a safer, more comfortable and “cleaner” space, which not only brings more people to this neighbourhood, thereby re-ducing the stigma of “Ghettoization”, but also creating conditions for the emergence of activities. However, the quality of the physical space is not enough for a place to be gifted with a new life. Therefore, a required a number of other factors are required, that depends on this space, and on which the space also depends.

In the social setting of Mouraria, it is possible to observe different associations and non-institutional entities that act in the different social dynamics that characterize the territory. Some of these institutions fight against social exclusion with various initiatives, from projects that

support the most vulnerable social classes, to actions to prevent risky behaviours and marginality or the promo-tion of leisure and cultural activities for the youth and the elderly. Meanwhile, others promote and value the cultural heritage of the area. Some of the promoters and collaborators of these activities do not live in the neighbourhood but have long experience in this field and know the social dynamics on which they act.

The establishments that opened in the Largo are linked to creativity, which is a factor that brings together dif-ferent social groups and brings back life to this space with various events like exhibitions, debates, exhibitions and workshops where the public space is the privileged setting.

Image 03- Synthetis scheme of the urban rehabilitation process in Largo do Intendente

Image 02- Terraces in Largo do Intendente

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05. CONCLUSIONS

Largo do Intendente illustrates the evolution of the con-cept of urban rehabilitation, presenting a multidimen-sional perspective of this concept, as opposed to unidi-rectional interventions. The advantages of the adoption of complex and integrated strategies are visible, since public space and creativity complement each other and create synergies that contribute for a new life in the Largo.

The artistic component has a key role in urban regener-ation, given that creative activities create diverse dynam-ics and bond social groups with different interests. The artistic population who settles in Largo is potentiating its revitalization, creating new incentives for local peo-ple, for example in education since the level of under-achievement at Mouraria is high.

The importance that the people and the local associ-ations had and have in this process, in the discussion of the plan, in the establishment of activities and in the management of the spaces should be emphasized. This participation demonstrates a change in attitude from the political powers, recognizing the added value of working with local population, taking advantage of their connec-tion and knowledge of the neighbourhood and conse-quently of the social tissue.

It is expected that these historical territories, once re-habilitated, will bring new residents, economic activities, and thus the increase in property values. It might be-come impossible the permanence of the local popula-tion with the arrival of gentrifiers. Thus, it is necessary to counteract these negative effects. However, some of these new residents, who favour neighbourhood life, of-ten do not participate in this life because during week-days they are busy with their professional activities and during the weekend they go out of the neighbourhood. One can consider that gentrifiers are also the popula-tion that enjoys the events and activities that have been occurring in this area, defined as “ephemeral gentrifiers” (Menezes, 2011), influencing the social reconstruction of this territory.

This aspect raises questions regarding the communi-ty identity that this new entity will have, as well as the consequences that brings the entry of new individuals attracted by new exploration possibilities and different

ways of appropriation of public space.

Reflecting on the issues that this study triggered, it is considered that the existence of services to the sur-rounding population in Largo could be an integrative strategy of the entire population of the surrounding area, providing the exchange of knowledge among ev-eryone who benefits from that complex territory.

The issue of urban rehabilitation, in its multiple dimen-sions and time, will continue to gain importance. The role of the architect, together with other areas and planning strategies, proves to be critical in trying to find solutions that potentiate new life in the most segregated areas of the city, ensuring also the sustainability of the interventions, in a constantly evolving society. The col-laboration between government, private organizations, architects and other stakeholders is important, in order to meet the ever increasing challenges that cities pose, because they infer directly in the social and economic life of the city.

References

Council of Europe (2005), Guidance on urban rehabilita-tion. Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing

Magalhães, A. (2008), Reabilitação urbana- experiências percussoras em Lisboa. Lisboa: Parque EXPO

Menezes, M. (2011), Todos na Mouraria? Diversidades, Desigualdades e diferenças entre os que vêm ver o bair-ro, nele vivem e nele querem viver. Congresso Luso-Af-ro-Brasileiro de Ciências Sociais

Neves, M., Gonçalves, P. (2011), Projecto de Requalifi-cação Urbanística e Ambiental do Largo do Intendente / Rua do Benformoso: memória descritiva e justificativa. Lisboa: CML