Cities As Systems: Reinventing Functions for Abandoned Areas

Cities as Systems: Reinventing Functions for Abandoned Areas

Rui Roda[1]

PhD candidate at the Politecnico di Milano

Abstract

The reflections contained in this paper are part of the enlarged debate on the in-depth systemic changes affecting the industrial and service functions in the contemporary city.

This contribution tries to highlight the dichotomy between two historical contexts: the former cultural context, which encompassed the now abandoned industrial structures, and the present context.

Following this perspective, a parallel will be drawn between the changes that have taken place in the urban structure on the one hand, and in society on the other.

Although multiple factors are part of these urban and social processes - the analysis of which goes beyond the scope of this paper - an effort will be made to focus on technology[2], social dynamics and their relationship to these empty spaces.

It is argued that some characteristics of technological and social processes overlap and may achieve a perfect symbiosis as their dynamics converge to give shape to an urban process of regeneration.

In this sense, an analogy is proposed between two overlapping networks: the urban structure and the world network. Through these overlapping fabrics, points of junction and points of discontinuity may emerge.

As a hypothesis we may assume that abandoned areas are independent points - that is discontinued points. However, it is exactly their "emptiness" that represents an added value: they are an ideal platform on which to locate both technological and social structures.

By “empty spaces” I mean entities that might interact with technology, while establishing a relationship with new lifestyles which is simultaneously independent and symbiotic.

These spaces might be interpreted as either memories of the past or renewed presences, remodelled on the technological and the social complexity of the future.

By underlining the phenomenon of now abandoned industrial areas, a possible scenario for re-use will be outlined.

Key-words

Contemporary metropolis, cities as systems, reconversion of abandoned areas.

An inoperative production world: present perfect continuous

The large structures that were built for industrial societies in the early stages of their development were icons of the "paleotechnical"[3] paradise of an "industrial city" (Mumford, 1982), which, as it appears from the contributions of many scholars, was the mirror of a mechanical society.

These abandoned brownfield sites represent a great heritage from the past, which is currently ignored. This phenomenon is most visible in industrialized countries like Italy, Germany, the UK and France. Figure 1 illustrates these scenarios through several typologies, such as silos and warehouses.

Figure 1. Abandoned industrial structures

Analysing the numerous historical studies which have focused on this period, various interpretations can be seen in relation to space and time. In the past, these two variables offered a comforting vision of rational stability, thanks to the many cycles of expansion in industrial society.

In this context, abandoned areas raise several questions of different types: cyclical or structural change, de-industrialization and its several variables (employees, product, demand for spaces, etc.), especially de-industrialization dominated by new and different technological patterns[4] (Gastaldo, 1989).

Partly as a result of the subsequent cycles of expansion, the history of metropolises has seen the emergence of other types of buildings designed for specific functions, for example office buildings. These are the result of the great technological upgrades that have developed from social dynamics in large cities, fostering the concentration of administrative bodies, a sort of remote control, driven by a technology which consolidated this entire sector (Mumford, 1982).

The result was the erection of large office buildings, which, in their turn, led to the emergence of sub-districts in the urban fabric. "A sort of vertical file of human beings, with uniform windows, uniform façades, uniform rooms, one floor above the other, in competition with other high-rises for light, air and financial prestige", as described by Mumford (1982, p. 577). This typology found its original form in the United States in the late 19th century.

Since my purpose is not to carry out an exhaustive study, I will use the Italian case as a representative one. Italy has approximately 3000 ha of abandoned areas, almost entirely industrial (Dansero, 1993)[5].

A period of great change is currently occurring in the office sector. As a result of technological upgrades, the Internet economy and cyberspace, and social changes, this sector is undergoing new changes in the work dynamic (Rifkin, 2000). Today, in the emerging Internet economy, a process is being identified in which companies readjust to an increasingly less tangible space.

According to Rifkin (2000), there is presently a trend towards an increasingly clear contraction of workspaces. One of the reasons is the trend among companies to access new work dynamics and new services (just-in-time, leasing, outsourcing).

Consequently, it is hard to find an opportunity to use these buildings within cities; considered useless, they are finally abandoned[6]. Even those more recent office buildings present symptoms of “abandonment”. The expression “to rent” visible in Figure 2 could be interpreted as evidence of great changes in the urban space.

Figure 2. Evidence of empty spaces in the inner city that were designed for a past market.

The phenomenon of abandoned buildings in these two sectors (industrial and offices) introduces a disturbing element of disorder into urban space, resulting in neglected and anonymous spaces which very often are just a memory of a bygone era. In their essence, they represent an absolute lack of integration of the new uses of and for the area.

In a passive way, these spaces contribute to increasing disorder and marginality; they are elements devoid of any function which contribute to urban degradation. The city, at this point, faces serious and radical discontinuities in its urban fabric.

It is important to emphasise the potential value that these empty boxes represent if they are reused in a flexible way. These are spaces that often experience unplanned, informal occupations of unruly dwelling, lacking any order and principle. It is a spontaneous disorder, which in the end represents the reflection of their value and ability - a potential that is awaiting an opportunity to re-functionalize itself according to new dynamics of the city.

New social dynamics: links to a Flexible Metropolis

The hypothesis of re-generation, the re-use of these empty boxes, is considered more as an opportunity than as a problem to be solved. The historically proven ability of architecture to resist transformations and constant changes, and to always re-adjust itself to new needs should also be pointed out.

According to Beguinot (1999), our cities are "city-networks", connected on a planetary scale, in which the physical relationship with the urban fabric is often detached from the "network" itself. The network is built and nurtured by the new "species", the homo tecnologicus, as stated by Longo (2001). The author considers that society is living a perfect symbiosis with technology, whose result manifests itself in the formation of a "global brain". This “symbiont" has been dealt with by scholars of transversal subjects: Ken Friedman, Giuseppe Longo, Guido Martinotti, Dematteis and others.

This network, which Friedman (1996) calls “Virtual Cities”[7], is something that overlaps with the physical space of cities. This paper will consider the hypothesis that these disconnected points between the urban fabric and the global network may be due to the presence of these empty boxes.

These spaces, which are not connected with the planetary network, represent structures that were built in the past for the purpose of nurturing a "modern" society (Bauman, 2000). They were icons of "modernity”, they represented the model of this (Fordist) society, where human activities were reduced to simple, preestablished and routine motions (Bauman, 2000).

According to the author, "human activities were destined to be obedient, mechanically executed and without mental faculties being used, excluding any spontaneity or individual initiatives." (p. 33)

Nowadays, considering the hypothesis of re-functionalizing these spaces to the planetary network means considering Longo’s symbiont (2001) as the key component to link the network with the empty box.

As social evolution brings new contexts, it is necessary to consider a new design dynamic involving a dialogue between technology, the empty box and the symbiont.

This homo tecnologicus lives in an environment that is different from that of "modern" society (Bauman, 2000). It is a man who has lost his enthusiasm for height, weight and density, which used to fascinate him (Rifkin, 2000). While, in the past, he constructed huge artefacts, today his goal is instantaneous communication.

According to Bauman (1999), we are part of a society which is experiencing a great mobility and in which uncertainty is a constant element. The author claims that greater freedom leads to less frustration, but can at the same time bring insecurity.

These “values” can make an important contribution to methods of intervention and the reconnection of these links.

Some authors have investigated this theme, as such Castells (1996), Beguinot (1998), Rifkin (2000) and Manzini (2004), among others.

Based on the concept of "smart connection", Beguinot (1998) consider that architecture can adapt itself or interconnect with the global network. Starting from this premise, I would suggest that these empty boxes are architectural structures which can be reused.

In this way, the hardware of “heavy modernity" (Bauman, 2000) could be included in the "smart connection", and the result would certainly help to re-qualify and revive the urban environment, improving the quality of city life.

Connecting these boxes to the network means considering the possible technological dynamics inside.

In order for these empty spaces to take part in the network, it must be nurtured and enlarged to provide for new and ever-changing technologies. The “re-functioning” of these spaces according to this social and technological scenario might also be an opportunity for a natural and steady upgrade of the city itself.

This upgrade represents a process of connection of the physical space - which may be a part of large fluxes, of the new economy (Rifkin, 2000), of mobility and social uncertainty (Bauman, 1999) - to the network.

The reuse of these spaces would also make it possible to reorder the city, directly or indirectly, and would mean connecting these spaces with a new technological and social grammar.

Regeneration

Regenerating[8] these spaces might be considered an engine for urban development (Dematteis, 1999), an opportunity to conceive a new and flexible architecture of the city, a "non-material architecture", an empty space that is permeable in all directions, an indispensable element for the "wired city" (Beguinot, 1999).

Reusing these "empty boxes" may be an example of "non-material architecture" and of its use in the logic of the "wired city". In this sense, we can imagine the beginning of a new approach to the project which might create a new social and technological interface and, consequently, a new way of considering the city.

As stated by Branzi (1990, p.11): “The metropolis is a reality, but it is also a concept that varies over time, in history; it corresponds to a general theoretical model of the world, which is modified from time to time in order to propose new configurations.”

This context induces to concern new visions of project. According to Manzini (2004), this vision must consider the necessities of the “fluid world”.

Partly as a result of conurbation, some of these buildings are already located inside cities, and very often occupy prime sites.

No less important is the development of an economic framework which will be favorable to this scenario. The phenomenon of abandoned structures is not a problem, but rather an opportunity for economic growth, based on their ‘re-functionalizing’ (Cunningham, 2002). According to Cunningham, only the development of "restoration" will finally increase society's awareness, establishing the third cycle of social life, which consists of this "restoration"[9]. For the author, economic growth in the past was based on the exploitation of new resources and new territories; now, however, it is based on the expansion of existing resources.

Developing Cunningham’s idea, the reintegration and reuse of these empty structures in the urban fabric may help to stimulate a new economy: "the restoration economy".

Empty Space as a Value

There have already been examples of this re-integration of spaces in the residential sector, as can be seen in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Buenos Aires’ Lofts: reuse of silos and an ex-textile factory.

The purpose here is not to give an exhaustive picture of the events; however, some aspects are worth mentioning. The loft phenomenon began and developed in New York in the '50s (Rykwert, 2000). The appropriation of these spaces started suddenly, through the desire to take over patterns of alternative living, which represented a lifestyle that was considered out of the norm. The phenomenon is considered as a spontaneous need of artists, musicians and individuals who were often classified as foreign to the parameters of "modernity". In the eyes of this society, they lived irregular, disorderly free lives, which were subject to criticism in those times, but which are now mixed with the scenario of current society. It was something that got close to, or anticipated, our present "desires".

Nowadays, the appearance of the "loft typology" reflects a strong desire for this type of space, or perhaps for this form of dwelling. This is the case with "false lofts", which do not originate as a solution for re-functionalizing a structure of the past, but are buildings designed and planned specifically to be lofts.

I would like to mention a curious and tangible example occurring in Brazil[10]. In the city of Florianópolis an entire complex is being built. The initiative is supported by a nationally renowned painter, who gives the project his name and the image of his works; a kind of unconscious homage to the age of the original lofts.

The increasing popularity of these "fake" structures could be interpreted as the market taking hold of a change in contemporary living.

In Florianópolis, this lifestyle is promoted with the slogan "The first loft in the city!" The building looks more like a factory than a traditional residential space, but it is perceived by ordinary people as something new, original and desirable.

By a kind of indistinct suggestion the building identifies itself as a technological box or the surface of a machine. It is not clear whether this growing market represents a genuine desire for a new lifestyle or the institutionalization of one. Since no abandoned buildings exist, new structures are built to reproduce them in a kind of false re-functioning.