A case study on public spaces in contemporary cities: Nelson Bugalho Park, in Presidente Prudente, SP, Brazil

• Grant number: 17/06498-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 01, 2017
• End date: December 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Geography - Human Geography
• Principal Investigator: Eda Maria Góes
• Grantee: Patrícia Cereda de Azevedo
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia (FCT). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Presidente Prudente. Presidente Prudente , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The present project aims at studying the relations between the city and public spaces, with a focus on public parks, their meanings and daily uses, in the context of a medium city in the countryside of São Paulo state, Brazil. The object of this case study, Nelson Bugalho Park is a space for leisure located in a recently requalified valley bottom, between several neighborhoods in the northern part of the city of Presidente Prudente. The study of such park shall enable the application of the following requirements: (1. Vitality, 2. Meaning, 3. Adequacy to the norms, 4. Accessibility, 5. Management control, 6. Effectiveness of its constructive technology, and 7. Justice), which, according to (BRANDÃO, 2011, p. 36), are necessary for high quality public spaces. For the present work, however, demands adaptations on Brandão ideas, since that Portuguese urbanist does not take in consideration the influence of socio-spatial inequality, which is mandatory for the understanding of Brazilian cities. After observing the initial years of implementation of the park (2016-2018), two aspects are particularly taken into account: how the park impacted its immediate surroundings, and the relations between what was planned and what was fully done. (AU)