Incidence of participation in urban regeneration policies in Catalonia: actors, citizenship and uneven community capacity

Identifier:  PC:2969

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/PC2969

Authors:  Gutiérrez, A.

Abstract:
The Neighbourhood Law –approved in 2004- supported the introduction of new tools for integrated urban regeneration of deprived neighbourhoods in Catalonia. The main contributions of this law are: providing an institutional and political framework for impulse the necessary investment for the redevelopment of some of the most deprived urban areas in Catalonia and incorporating holistic urban regeneration strategies that necessarily need to take into account the involvement and co-responsibility of the local community.The analysis of the results of semi-structured interviews of managers and technicians of more than fifty neighbourhood regeneration plans has allowed contrasting views and perceptions of the role of participative processes in different urban contexts. Secondly, this approach has also enabled the comparison of the different methodologies and tools used in each urban context. Finally, the results presented in this paper can illustrate the uneven impact of participation in neighbourhood regeneration plans in Catalonia in three main important aspects: involvement of local actors, community co-responsibility with the local development strategy and real capacity of the community to influence in the definition of neighbourhood regeneration strategy.