In 1984, employees from the water company SEMAPA founded the housing area of
SEMAPA. The area is a sub-area of District 1, a city district situated in the
north part of the city of Cochabamba. This area consists of detached houses
provided with technical infrastructure, such as water and sewage network.
SEMAPA is in need of improvements concerning the outdoor environment. Within
the housing area, there is a lack of public spaces and the majority of the
streets are in poor condition. Furthermore the neighbourhood is divided in two
separate parts; therefore the area does not work as a functional entity. To
make proposals for the upgrading of this area have been in focus for my diploma
work.
SEMAPA constitutes a so-called Base Territorial Organization (OTB, Organization
Territorial del Base), an entity at the most local level of the administrative
system in Bolivia. In the 1990s, there were administrative reforms carried out
in the country. The decentralisation of some power and the construction of the
local administrative units of OTB were created to, among other things, promote
popular participation among the inhabitants.
I was given the task about planning of public spaces in this particular housing
area through PROCASHA, an NGO (Non Governmental Organization) that promotes
cooperative housing. The present process of democratisation in Bolivia has
contributed to an increased interest for cooperative housing as an alternative
way to attain acceptable housing for everyone. Today, there is no cooperative
organization in the neighbourhood SEMAPA but discussions have begun concerning
a future possibility to finance improvements of the public spaces by founding
one.
Among the inhabitants of SEMAPA, there is a general awareness about the
shortcomings within the housing area. A willingness to accomplish changes is
also apparent. A lack of communication between the inhabitants complicates
though any development to support collective and cooperative arrangements.
The overall aim of the study is to, on the basis of social and physical
requirements specific for the area, make a proposal for improvements of the
housing area. The main focus is on the design of public spaces in order to
facilitate social activities. In order to reach this goal, an important issue
concerns the identification of the interests and aspirations among the
inhabitants as well as physical deficiencies restraining the inhabitants from
carrying out social activities and collaboration. At present, the neighbourhood
does not work as a functional unity; it is split up in two separated housing
entities. Therefore, an additional purpose of this project is to connect the
entities through spatial planning, and by doing so, increase the opportunities
for future cooperative and collective organisation of the inhabitants.
I have developed a proposal and it comprises two sections; the street pattern
and the recreational area. The overall aim of the proposal is to by means of
physical changes facilitate social life with the purpose of increasing the
possibilities to develop a community feeling.
The proposal includes a number of measures to improve the street pattern in the
housing area. At present, there is no clear hierarchy concerning the streets
and in general, most of the streets are physically in bad condition. This
entails limited accessibility for both cars and pedestrians. Since only few
inhabitants do possess cars it is above all important to create a safe street
environment for the unprotected road users. In order to improve the street
environment, I propose a hierarchical street net. The cars will still have
access to all the streets but by means of re-designing of the streets the
drivers will be encouraged to use only some for through traffic. The particular
street leading through the recreational area will remain since this makes the
entire housing area easily accessible. Nonetheless, the traffic and speed will
be circumscribed by physical measures. Physical improvements of the streets,
such as pavements, are also proposed to increase the safety and the
accessibility for the pedestrians. Moreover, a new street and improvements of
entrances will increase the accessibility to the housing area but also the exit
from the area.
In order to facilitate social life, one of the most important measurements is
the construction of public spaces for various activities and public meetings.
Therefore, a central area aimed for recreational facilities is at the core of
this proposal. The area will consist of public spaces suitable for different
kind of activities, and parks to increase the green structure in the housing
area. The covering of some parts of the canal is proposed, above all in order
to create connected areas for the activities and to link together the separated
housing area. In addition, the covering diminishes some of the problems due to
the canal. A number of measures are also suggested concerning the remaining
open parts of the canal in ...
