Planners and the Pride Factor: The Case of the Electric Escalator in Medellín

Abstract

The outdoor electric escalator in Medellín's Comuna 13, part of an Integrated Urban Project aimed at bridging the city's socio‐spatial divide, did not fully accomplish the project's goal of increasing the mobility of 12,000 people living in the area, nor did it make a significant contribution to diminishing social inequalities. The escalator project can be considered a prestigious solution to an ill‐defined problem that did not take people's mobility patterns into account. Although the project succeeded in increasing civic pride and improving Medellín's image of modernity and progress, it also led to new social inequalities.

Resilience as a City Brand: The Cases of the Comuna 13 and Moravia in Medellin, Colombia

“…For them, while tourists visiting an area can strengthen the pride of the residents, "over-tourism" can lead to undesirable outcomes, such as a negative perception of these same tourists. In the case of Medellin, Reimerink [59] maintains that Las Escaleras succeeded in increasing civic pride and improving Medellín's image of modernity, but also led to new social inequalities. Her research conducted in 2014 demonstrated that the lack of participation in the conception of the project created important divergences between the planners and inhabitants.…”

“…Composed of 6 levels and 984 m long, Las Escaleras were initially built to improve the mobility of the approximately 12 000 residents of the comuna 13. The real impact of Las Escaleras in terms of mobility improvement sparked harsh criticism in the community, a context already well documented [7,59,60]. The main criticism is linked to the fact that this urban object contributed a lot more to the international image of Medellin than to the mobility of its residents.…”

“…While visiting the escalators you can observe the different types of art that surround this place." [61] Several commentators, whether in the media or academia [59,62], have pointed to the pride that Las Escaleras has brought to the residents of the comuna 13. While this is indisputably the case to a certain extent, most recent research from the author has demonstrated that Las Escaleras as a "pride factor" [59] is far from being a homogeneous phenomenon.…”

“…[61] Several commentators, whether in the media or academia [59,62], have pointed to the pride that Las Escaleras has brought to the residents of the comuna 13. While this is indisputably the case to a certain extent, most recent research from the author has demonstrated that Las Escaleras as a "pride factor" [59] is far from being a homogeneous phenomenon. Some residents certainly see the electric stairs as a positive outcome that improves the image of the comuna 13, but a growing number of inhabitants expressed discomfort with the internationalization and touristification of their neighbourhood.…”

The Smart City of Medellín, its achievements and potential risks

“…At the same time, and in large part fuelled by private sector resources, Medellín has become the subject of a broad social and spatial policy aimed at improving the living conditions of its inhabitants, and achieving political stability. It is not without significance that the private sector, wanting to attract foreign investment and attract tourism, launched a broad campaign at the turn of the 20th and 21st century to improve its image (McLean 2014;Sotomayor 2015;Moncada 2016;Reimerink 2017).…”