Urban state entrepreneurialism in Chile: policies and planning within high-rise residential production in the pericenter area of Greater Santiago

Authors

  • Ernesto José López-Morales Universidad de Chile
  • Ivo Ricardo Gasic Klett Universidad de Chile
  • Daniel Alberto Meza Corvalán Universidad de Chile

Abstract

Technical-urban adjustments oriented towards raising the capital required for a large scale urban renewal are essential for the neo-liberal production of urban space; this is a key factor that has not been properly studied in Latin America. Such municipal actions stem from the so-called urban stateentrepreneurialism or the ad hoc regulation regarding the use and intensity of land exploitation, which involves the generation of public-private partnerships, incorporation of profitability logics within municipal practices and state speculative action at local level. Focusing on six municipalities located in the inner city of Santiago de Chile, and through literature review, interviews to key agents and the revision of the public register of properties, this case study (2000-2011) examines the changes undergone by regulation instruments and the consequences for real estate production and the location of residential developments. The analysis concludes that, although private public partnerships are not an essential condition for intensive urban renewal, elements such as inter-communal competition, the capacity of inner local governments to relocate areas for urban renewal through legal modifications and the deliberate generation of intra and extra-communal mobilization of real estate capital are prerequisites for the intensive renewal of land.

Author Biographies

Ernesto José López-Morales, Universidad de Chile

PhD in Urban Planning, University College London. Assistant Professor, Researcher, Departamento de Urbanismo, Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Universidad de Chile.

Ivo Ricardo Gasic Klett, Universidad de Chile

BA in Geography, Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Universidadde Chile.

Daniel Alberto Meza Corvalán, Universidad de Chile

BA in Architecture, Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Universidad de Chile.