Abstract:
Economics of space is not simply about the supply and demand of land, there are a number of other factors that come in play which cause market distortion and take land away from main line market. Politics of space is one such element that upsets the status quo and results in misbalancing the spatial structure. The physical manifestation of the interface between economics and politics of space is evident in terms of peripheral land development, changes in bylaws and building regulations, economic development policies and the emergence of class based neighborhoods. communities is from Kennedy Road Settlement, Durban, South Africa. The third case that documents the changes in building bylaws and regulations and the resistance put up by local communities is from Porto Alegre, Brazil and the last case documenting the impacts of economic development policies is from Dakhaliyah in Egypt. Historically surphlus lead to trade, market was the place of exchange where demand and supply was met. Supply was dependent on produce, availability and cost. In a capitalist economy however, price of land is dependent on cost (including dev costs) + profit + speculative margin (unreal / artificial). Seller holds discretion-free market distortion of actual prices. Values that are non monetary come into play: political and social gains which are not quantifiable but are attached to discretion. In a public or community ownership the formula for calculating the cost of land is different. Here the cost benefit analysis, role of government in terms of subsidization also comes in play. Although the limit of investment to a space is mainly determined through ownership patterns, availability of infrastructure and location but politics, stakeholder interests, security of tenure, investment possibilities and jurisdiction play an equally important role. This is where the politics of space playing a major role in land development are: 1) Increasing urbanization, 2) Planning is out and projects are in 3)Large infrastructure projects. Assumption that mega projects are needed to solve problems of infrastructure in our cities. Pressure form the international corporate sector and finance institutions, International contractors and not local governments or local citizens determining the form of the city, controlling it assets and taking over its basic functions. Laws to protect communities Land gets even more inaccessible to poor communities. Communities being chucked out to make way for shopping malls, discount superstores, up market condos, hotels, fast food franchise and business parks The bottom line is profit Auctioning off natural resources (land, forests, oil) to the highest corporate bidder. The physical manifestation of the interface between economics and politics of space is evident in terms of peripheral land development, changes in bylaws and building regulations, economic development policies and the emergence of class based neighborhoods. The impact of this interface is directly felt by the local vulnerable communities who over the years have learnt to retaliate through different modes in order to gain access and right to land titles. Four examples from around the globe have been documented here that reflect upon the role of communities in mitigating the impacts of the interface of economics and politics of space.
Page(s):
122-137
DOI:
DOI not available
Published:
Journal: Proceedings of the 5th Seminar on Urban and Regional Planning, Volume: 0, Issue: , Year: 2010