Next economy in the areas in between city and port.

Rotterdam case-study: resilient spaces for a contemporary urban port

Conference paper (2017)

Authors

P. De Martino Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, History, Form & Aesthetics - Architecture and the Built Environment , OLD History of Architecture & Urban Planning
Research Group
History, Form & Aesthetics (Architecture and the Built Environment) (TU Delft)
Sustainability Resilience Harbours Waterfronts
More Info
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Published Date

2017

Language

English

Reuse Rights

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Department

Architecture

Research Group

History, Form & Aesthetics

Abstract

Since 1960, global pressures and functional needs pushed the ports to move away from the city. The technological revolution of maritime transport, the container traffic and the relocation of port activities outside urban centers, have radically transformed the relationship between city and port. However, the contemporary debate comes back on some unresolved issues and pushes forward to the possibility and necessity to use these areas in a different way, experimenting new hybridisms and creative processes, as a first step towards sustainable development of ports and port cities.
This paper asks the following question: how does the process related to new port functions located at the edge of the city and the regeneration of the historic port, rewrite the relation between city and port? City and port need a paradigm shift. There is the need to establish new relationships between the large-scale of the infrastructure and future urban development dynamics. Next economy means an urban, local and green economy. It is a new economic paradigm. It represents a transition from a stable to a flexible economy. These areas, today, are living this transition and they need a new economy that means, a starting point for a new way of thinking. The example of Rotterdam highlights the great potential of some areas and their ability to create new economies, re-stablishing a connection with the local identity. Port Authority, Municipality and University are working together with the aim to improve the quality of those spaces, convinced that this can be an added value for both, city and port.