Transformation of Spanish Cities: 19th and 20th Centuries
Internal Reform and Enlargement of Historic Centers
Using the example of Haussmann’s Paris, Spain applied similar, albeit more modest, urban policies in the late 19th century. “Great Roads” began to be built to sanitize old quarters, improving accessibility and social control, and creating better housing or commercial premises. These large tracts had different goals in different cities, often moving old neighbors to peripheral sites, initiating a process of urban segregation. While different social classes previously coexisted, now there were distinct neighborhoods based on class.
Gentrification
Despite this process, many people continued working in the historic centers, leading to the rental of buildings or the renovation of the interiors of city blocks, creating workers’ housing like corralas or courtyard communities. Low-cost housing, similar to that in Anglo-Saxon countries, was also promoted.
Extensions: New Planned Urban Areas
Extensions were new neighborhoods planned in the 19th century around the historic center, sometimes requiring the demolition of city walls. The Eixample of Ildefonso Cerdà was built in Barcelona in 1859. The widening of Madrid, by Carlos María de Castro, was built in 1860. This model imposed the bourgeois city. It was complete with sewers, lighting, running water, and aesthetic features like fountains, gardens, and monuments. Today, extensions are the living areas of the bourgeoisie and also house the most luxurious shops, banks, and offices.
The Contemporary City
The contemporary city began in the second half of the 19th century with the Industrial Revolution.
- Urban land for housing, commerce, industries, or equipment became a business, leading to real estate speculation. Confiscations were also made to free up space, often at the expense of church buildings.
- Emergence of factories and industries, alongside makeshift working-class neighborhoods.
- Projects to sanitize the city, including paving and drainage. New rules were implemented to make the city more healthy and luminous, such as alignment requirements for municipalities.
- Construction of cemeteries.
- Demolition of the remaining walls in cities like Zaragoza, Valencia, and Seville, replaced by ring roads.
- Arrival of the railroad, starting with the Barcelona-Mataró line in 1848. Train stations guided the growth of cities, requiring large spaces on the outskirts and leading to the creation of new districts.
- Creation of new landmarks and spaces, such as renovated town halls, universities, arenas, prisons, and markets.
Formation of the First Suburbs
In the second half of the 19th century, suburbs emerged. Due to the inability of the historic centers or the extensions to meet the land demands of immigrants arriving in areas like Madrid, Barcelona, or Bilbao, or others with emerging industries, slums and shantytowns appeared.
The scarcity of land, especially in the extensions, forced certain industrial activities or housing to move to peripheral locations, which were cheaper and close to communication centers. These peripheries mixed agricultural and urban uses, and included marginal housing, railway premises, or garden cities.
Impact of Developmentalism (1950s) on Urban Evolution
- After the Civil War, the rural exodus continued due to the harshness of rural life.
- In the 1950s, extensions continued to be built.
- Affordable housing was constructed.
1960s: Rapid Industrialization and Urban Impact
- Housing subsidy; Act of 1954.
- The start of urban planning with the publication of the first Land Law in 1956, establishing categories: urban land (built land), land for development (ready to grow), and rural land (natural areas where construction was prohibited).
- By the 1980s, many districts lacked services like transport, schools, and sports facilities.
- Traffic problems arose as many Spaniards bought cars, leading to congestion and access issues, as well as parking problems.
- Consolidation of urban areas and large metropolitan areas like Barcelona and Madrid.
- Creation of substandard housing and dormitory towns in the periphery.
Major Problems of Spanish Cities
- Social: Historic centers have contrasting class occupation, from modest classes and a significant number of immigrants to renovated areas occupied by the middle and upper classes. Extensions are occupied by the middle or upper-middle class, and these spaces are very expensive. The first dwellings of the 1950s-1970s, in housing-block neighborhoods, are occupied by the middle or lower-middle class. The outer ring is made up of attached, suburban environments, occupied by the middle or upper-middle class. There are problems with transport and services, often combined with marginality issues.
- Supply: Cities need to ensure the supply of food, water, and energy. For example, Madrid requires 40 tons of fruit and vegetables, plus 500 tons of meat and fish daily. Cities need infrastructure to guarantee this supply.
- Heavy traffic during peak hours, from the center to the periphery, is being addressed with ring roads like the M30 and M40 in Madrid. Efforts are being made to reduce the use of private vehicles and promote public transport.
- Atmospheric pollution is responsible for 16,000 premature deaths in Spain. Traffic is responsible for 80% of noise pollution, with 10 million people exposed to noise levels above 65 dB.
- Domestic waste amounts to 1.5 kg per person per day, in addition to industrial waste. This is very expensive for cities due to the required infrastructure and the need for landfills.
- Increase in housing prices: Less wealthy classes are forced to rent or live in remote areas of the city or in degraded areas.
- Debt of municipalities: Municipalities are reclassifying land to sell it and generate revenue.
- Crime and social exclusion: Various social programs are being implemented to address these issues, managed by city halls.