The endurance of the modernist planning paradigm: the Functional City in contemporary planning in Medellín, Colombia

Abstract

The Functional City principles steered the development of Latin American cities post WWII, but their influence in current urbanisation in LA has not been acknowledged or studied, due to the presumption by planners that contemporary planning operates within a very different planning paradigm to the earlier modernist one. In contrast, this paper argues that contemporary urban planning practices in Colombia are still dependent today on functionalist urbanism. Through a case study of three of the 28 approved Planes Parciales (sectorial plans) in Medellín, Colombia, based on primary data sources, I argue how the Functional City principles have been overshadowed by and formulated from a socio-economic perspective which creates discrepancies between local planners and academics regarding their application. This study contributes to a better understanding of current urbanisation patterns in Latin America. Furthermore, this study will invite reflection and public debate over questions such as: urbanization for whom/against whom and who decides?

Keywords:

• modernist urbanism
• Latin American urbanism
• Functional City
• CIAM
• Medellin
• Colombia

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Edwar Calderón

EDWAR CALDERÓN is a Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the School of Geosciences at the University of Edinburgh. He attained his PhD in urban studies at the Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) where he was a Studio tutor from 2011 to 2015. He holds a Masters degree in Landscape Architecture and a certificate in Historic Preservation and Regionalism both from the University of New Mexico, USA, where he worked as a research assistant, participating in several community development projects and as a teaching assistant. Edwar is a chartered architect from Colombia and member of the Sociedad Colombiana de Arquitectos – SCA – (Colombian Architects’ Society). Edwar’s research interests lie in urban practices towards more sustainable and equitable human settlements in Latin America. His current research explores theories of spatial justice to understand the processes shaping the contemporary development and rapid transformation of land use in the Pacific Region of Colombia and how these processes deepen and extend inequality and injustice in the city.