Large-Scale Urban Projects and their Relationship to Cities: The Case of Puerto Norte (Rosario, Argentina)

Abstract

Large-Scale Urban Projects (LUPs) are recurrent instruments in contemporary planning. In general, they are the result of the transformation of former industrial sites, or areas that have lost their purpose and became relegated. On the one hand, LUPs are cherished opportunities for localities to transform problematic areas into bright new centralities; on the other hand they are opportunities for the multiplication of capital. However, LUPs can also be criticized for forcing a spatial relationship with the cities in which they are embedded and for becoming examples of urban fragmentation. Although this phenomenon is frequent, there are scarce studies that consider this issue as a central question. In this paper we examine the case of Puerto Norte which is linked to the city of Rosario and the Parana River, along with its main landscape and recreational resources.