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Imaginaries in dispute or on the territorialization of an urban conflict. The case of "Canchita de los Bomberos" (Mar del Plata, Argentina)

Only three months after the establishment of the “Programa Crédito Argentino del Bicentenario para la Vivienda Única Familiar”, the municipality of General Pueyrredón announces land available to commit to its implementation, including the area known as "Canchita de los Bomberos" in the city of Mar del Plata. In response, a group of neighbors conforms to defend its public use holding to various strategies in view of preventing the construction of housing in that area. In parallel, other stakeholders expressed their views on the implementation of the program and develop practices that dispute the legitimacy of the claims held by those neighbors. The purpose of the paper is to analyze the forms of symbolic appropriation reinforced and/or modified in light of the dispute; what Mele (2003) calls the process of territorialization. We argue that, while a clash of imaginary (Hiernaux, 2008a) occurs, a dominant imaginary emerges and manages to impose and legitimize the use and enjoyment of the space in its favor.

Urban Policies; Territorialization; Urban Imaginary


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