Arranged Urbanism: Modes of Informality and Governance Structures in Barranquilla, Colombia

During the last several years a dynamic transformation has been taking place at the northern city fringe of Barranquilla, Colombia: Shopping Malls, Gated Communities and Gated Tower Buildings have been built – a process very similar to other Latin American cities. The aim of my presentation is to reveal the underlying planning approaches and explain the role and influence of the private and public actors involved. The presentation contributes to the discussion on formal and informal practices of urban development in the Global South and shows the blurring borders between the ‘formal’ and the ‘informal’. The main finding of the analysis is the analogy between the interests of private actors, offical documents and the spatial transformation which is taking place. This analogy was made through the massive influence of private interests in public planning and a multitude of informal arrangements between the land owner and the public authorities. This form of urban development is described as ‘arranged urbanism’ and stands in a tradition of similar processes of spatial, economic and political development in Latin America, nevertheless, the pace and shape has changed. In addition, forms of ‘arranged urbanism’ can also be found outside of the Latin American context and thus present a new mode of planning governance in Cities in the Global South and the Global North.