Inclusive Urbanism in São Paulo Silvio Torres
The São Paulo metropolitan region acts as a laboratory for local and regional public policies focusing on urban regeneration and redevelopment in the ‘peripheries’ formed by the intense rural exodus over the last three decades. It is a region that had 8 million inhabitants in 1970 and 22 million at present, with 39 cities in its conurbation. This region is responsible for approximately 20% of Brazilian GDP. However, it has a highly fragmented urban tissue; it is uneven and poor in terms of urban infrastructure and the living conditions of its inhabitants. The central areas of these city conurbations offer high performance services, while the peripheries are disorganized, dense, and grow at very high rates. These are the common features of the poor suburbs of mega cities in Latin America. In recent years the role of the state government of São Paulo, led by Governor Geraldo Alckmin has been to establish priorities for inclusive urban development policies, focusing on transport, environmental sanitation and mechanisms that induce local socio-economic development. Several projects demonstrate these priorities: construction of the metropolitan beltway, restructuring of railway lines for high and medium capacity, strengthening the subway network, creating a Social-Environmental Recovery Program for Serra do Mar, and parks in the floodplain of the Tietê river, sanitation and water supply projects, among others. The State Housing Secretariat, the leading public policy for social housing, seeks opportunities to create innovative designs, model good construction practices and management, supported by funding and subsidies from different municipalities, in order to reach the most vulnerable families. The guidelines for social housing in São Paulo recognize that peripheral territories cannot be treated separately. They must be quickly integrated, by improving infrastructure, and by providing all necessary services and jobs. The new mass transit axis and the restructuring of highways are specific projects focusing action on the slums and squatter settlements of the last 10 years. Many projects for slum upgrading and the construction of affordable housing are being made to integrate these territories and allow the poor the opportunities for social inclusion. Two examples of good practice were carried out recently by the State Housing Secretariat Jardim Pantanal and Serra do Mar projects. These two projects present different challenges: to upgrade poor suburbs and identify insurmountable problems.
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The first project presented a complex arrangement of slums along one of the main roads of São Paulo municipality. Jardim Pantanal, in the Tietê river floodplain, consists of over 8,000 families and the urban regeneration project focused along three main axes: A B C
The density with which quality projects could potentially create exchanges with the local community; Urbanization through the improved sanitary conditions, upgrades and housing improvements for healthier conditions; Effective projects of social inclusion and community empowerment to offer new opportunities in the labor market.
The above mentioned long process of environmental intervention transformed the territory: improved health indicators with public sanitation and paved streets; expanded recreation areas and socialization zones; produced new standard houses of excellent quality; implemented recycling waste plant projects; factory units for sewing and clothing production; nurseries and housing façades improvements. The social impacts have resulted in the reduction of homicides, down to the lowest level in ten years. These achievements also indicate the effective use of public funds in housing policies and carry over to other urban policies, allowing a seamless integration of the periphery into the metropolitan area. The second project, the conversion of the peripheral territories in the Metropolitan Region of Baixada Santista-Cubatão municipality consists of upgrading the slums along the mountain ranges into the environmentally protected areas. In addition to the urgent need to remove families from risks which they faced for more than 40 years, it was necessary to rescue the rainforest to improve the quality of water sources, strongly impacted by the presence of more than 7,000 families. This huge operation required an integrated design project that included lengthy negotiations with various social groups in order to prepare them for a new urban reality. This intervention, which had the support of the IDB (Inter-American Development Bank) and other local and national funding, consisted of a new neighborhood development, which was fully integrated into the urban fabric of the city with sustainable building housing units, equipped with proper standards and innovative devices for energy and water conservation. A form of ‘inclusive urbanism’ with high quality public services, this project was accompanied by the environmental restoration of ancient settlements. Safe geotechnical conditions and a new infrastructure for water and sanitation, with improved access to collective facilities and the local transport system was also integrated. The Social-Environmental Recovery Program of Serra do Mar has been the model for ‘social inclusion’ developments and responding to
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Several projects demonstrate these priorities: construction of the metropolitan beltway, railway lines for high and medium capacity, strengthening the subway network, creating a Social-Environmental Recovery Program for Serra do Mar, and parks in the floodplain of the Tietê river
socio-educational issues. It demonstrates a new form of engagement with authorities and demonstrates the need to form multidisciplinary teams (city experts) in order to address slum upgrading projects focusing on social efficiency, and on quality improvements in family life. Opportunities offered to families such as training courses in art education, radio and TV media, landscaping, and local entrepreneurship have been essential for social change and integration of households into the new neighborhoods. Finally, this points to a new direction for social housing policy in the state of São Paulo. In contrast to work consisting of slum upgrading and construction of affordable housing in the suburbs, São Paolo must also promote the renovation of under-utilized areas and degraded central zones. A call for private initiative, a Public and Private Partnership (PPP) under Administrative Concession, began this year for the construction of 20,000 housing units for low-income families in the central area of São Paulo. This is both an urban and economic renewal and a social inclusion project. The proposal aims to promote an improved quality of life for workers in the city center by offering homes close to the workplace with access to urban infrastructure. The initiative will help rehabilitate degraded areas, create jobs and provide new income (to the extent that companies will have new spaces for trade and services), while also improving the urban transport system. The project has the support of the private sector and three government spheres. In addition to the contribution of state and local governments, entrepreneurs can obtain part of their funding through federal programs. The challenge to integrate and socially include the urban poor requires a revolution in thinking and managing cities. It is most important for public officials - national, regional and local to share their synergy with the private initiatives. In Brazilian cities and in the state of São Paulo, the challenge is to improve the conditions of the slums, risky areas and illegal settlements by using creative solutions, while exploring other urban uses, re-inventing them in line with the desire to respond to involved agents, planners, stakeholders and residents.