Habitat for coexistence. Tools for analysis and urban evaluation

Província de Barcelona | 2012

The purpose of this publication is to publicize public administration personnel and entities that work on the theme of housing, public space, facilities, commerce, immigration, equality and youth, among others; The main results and conclusions of this research, highlighting the pragmatic aspects that can be useful in mitigating conflicts in the public space.

The study cases analyzed in this work are three neighborhoods located in three municipalities of the province of Barcelona: La Torrassa in Hospitalet de Llobregat, Erm in Manlleu and Congost in Granollers. The three have been remodeled with improvement projects, financed through the Llei de Barris.

La Torrassa (Hospitalet de Llobregat)

The neighborhood of La Torrassa is located in the municipality of L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, the second Catalan city; It has a population of 25,811 people (continuous Padrón of 2010). 32.75% are non-EU population, with the exception of Ecuador (6.32%), Bolivia (6.19%) and Morocco (3.10 percent). Despite the arrival in the last decade of young people of foreign origin, the population over the age of 65 continues to have an important role in the neighborhood, since it accounts for 18.83% of the total population. It is also remarkable that of the population born in Spain, an important part (31.84%) was born outside of Catalonia.

Congost (Granollers)

The district of the gorge is located in the municipality of Granollers within the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona, in the Vallès Oriental region. The neighborhood has a population of 4,309 people (Continuous Padrón of 2010). 30.38% were non-community population, with the population from Morocco (8.80%), Senegal (5.64%) and Bolivia (5.27%), the largest. The masculinity index is quite high, 112.27 (112.27 men for every 100 women). This is because many of the population that comes from Africa are men who have come to work without their families.

Erm (Manlleu)

The neighborhood of L'Erm is located in the municipality of Manlleu, district of Osona, in the province of Barcelona. L'Erm has a population of 6,202 people (continuous Padrón of 2010). 32.30% are non-community population. The vast majority of the foreign population comes from Morocco, whose population accounts for 27.57% of the total population of the neighborhood. The rest of the foreign population is a minority, with a percentage less than 1% (Colombia 0.48%, Romania 0.48% ...).

A first methodological contribution is the collection of primary data based on the application of qualitative methodologies, such as participant observation and spontaneous and in-depth interviews. This information generated has been added from the exploitation, with quantitative techniques, of the statistical data.

The other methodological contribution is the development of a series of graphic tools that incorporate the spatial dimension and facilitate the analysis of information. These tools have also been designed as a material for the training of technical people and participatory work with entities.

This research has achieved an approximation to the urban reality and the conditions of coexistence of the individual spaces. An important volume of primary information has been collected, with extensive field work, analyzed and contrasted with key reports. A series of general conclusions are derived from this study.