El urbanismo contingente en las obras públicas y el gobierno urbano: Barranquilla en las décadas de 1950 y 1960

Abstract

This paper makes a discussion about the contingent urbanism, as part of governing urban practices focused on the operation over the roads of the city (streets, avenues, sidewalks, etc.) and other public works (sewage system and rain gutters). It is also presented as a conceptual tool for describing and understanding how the urban space was produced in one of the most important Colombian cities in the 20th Century. The paper focuses on specific cases of urban reforms in Barranquilla, which was the second biggest city of the country and the most important harbor at the beginning of 1950 ́s. As a conclusion of the analysis, 5 characteristics of the contingent urbanism are presented, toward the following aspects: it ́s relation to the planned or academic urbanism; it ́s relation to the modernization processes; it ́s temporal and spatial scope; it ́s aesthetic and formal dimension; and the role of technics and politics.