Espaços livres públicos: um estudo sobre a apropriação e a limitação de acesso através do caso de Pelotas/RS

Abstract

This work addresses the problem of scarcity, precariousness, and limited access to public open spaces in contemporary times, through Lefèbvre's three-dimensional dialectic, emphasizing the social dimension of space. Space is understood as a complex and dynamic element, and the problem relates to the clash between the right to the city and processes of social exclusion. The general objective is to understand how the process of (re)production of public open spaces occurs, with emphasis on identifying and discussing the scarcity, precariousness, and limited access to them and their impacts on people's daily lives. The case study takes place in the city of Pelotas/RS, through two scales: the city scale contemplates the set of public open spaces within the urban perimeter, and the place scale is dedicated to the open spaces that characterize the interface between the Recanto de Portugal housing development and the Pelotas Stream. The temporal scope is linked to contemporaneity, seeCosta clues in the past and pointing to the future, through processes of horizontal and vertical decomposition of reality. The methodology employed in the work integrates dialectics as an analytical tool and case study as a research method. The city scale includes mapping, surveying, and analysis of open spaces and their conditions, while the place scale incorporates cartography and oral history into the procedures. The results highlight the complex relationship between public open spaces and society, evidencing a significant discrepancy between the conceived space and the effectively appropriated one, either through spaces of representation or spatial practice. Based on the studied case, the results demonstrate that the scarcity, precariousness, and limited access to these spaces are recurrent and expressive problems, and that the impacts on the daily lives of different social groups are varied. The vertical analysis identifies ruptures and continuities in the past and points to the need to reimagine cities as places of coexistence and creativity, overcoming purely economic rationality, towards a differential space. Finally, the thesis concludes that public open space is that which can be collectively appropriated, highlighting the importance of space appropriation as a political and social act, surpassing exchange value with use value.