The Neighbourhood in Pieces: The Fragmentation of Local Public Space in a Swedish Housing Area

Abstract

In this article, we investigate the transformation of local public spaces in the ethnically and socially diverse housing area Norra Fäladen during 1970–2015. After being built, the area soon faced stigmatization and became known as a problem area. This was followed by a series of investments in local public spaces aiming for a stronger appropriation of the neighbourhood by its inhabitants. The production of a ‘neighbourhood spirit’ has, however, slowly deteriorated over the last two decades. Through the introduction of new areas, with large single‐family houses on the one hand, and a densification of the existing housing stock on the other, the inhabitants’ dependence on the existing (but now decreasing) public spaces within the area has been polarized. Local public spaces are also being increasingly relocated from central parts of the neighbourhood to the peripheries or outside the area. In this article, we investigate how this quite slow, yet steady, transformation has affected the local public spaces and the everyday life of the area.

Territorial Destigmatization in an Era of Policy Schizophrenia

“…Another finding is that evidence seems to suggest that relatively little actual social mixing occurs in such initiatives and that they have limited impact on the well-being of the residents (Dunn, 2012). Recent studies remain even more skeptical toward social mix strategies (Lees, 2008;Christensen, 2015); one reason being that strategies of social mix also risk disrupting the social capital of local communities, precisely because a key component in these strategies is the displacement of a share of the local population (Kärrholm and Wirdelöv, 2019). Another reason is that these strategies are often informed by an implicit understanding of the neglected areas and housing estates as uniformly lacking in quality, and of the residents as uniformly lacking motivation, proper networks and role models, etc.…”

“…In the US, similar debates revolved around the terminology of the underclass, the inner city and the ghetto (Wacquant, 2008;Dunn, 2012). However, while territorial destigmatization--varying by country and context--has been an integral part of government strategies of urban renewal, regeneration and redevelopment policies and area-based interventions over the past three decades, it has remained understudied and only recently been directly addressed (Palmer et al, 2004;Dunn, 2012;McCormick et al, 2012;Horgan, 2018;Kudla and Courey, 2018;Kärrholm and Wirdelöv, 2019;Norris et al, 2019;Schultz Larsen and Delica, 2019).…”

Accelerated planning for urban housing infills: coordination strategies

“…A building permit may be issued for a measure that deviates from the plan, if the deviation is minor (or 'of limited extent and necessary for the area to be used or developed in a suitable manner') and consistent with the purpose of the plan. It is unusual to find studies of infill experiences in Sweden, although Kärrholm and Wirdelöv (2019) discuss the successive reduction of local public spaces, caused by densification of a housing area, and Brunes et al (2020) have investigated housing price effects of infill projects, as already mentioned.…”

Cosmopolis: public spaces, cosmopolitanism, and democracy

“…Thus, it can be stated that public spaces are places where “disorganized” civil society also expresses itself in a contestation manner, thus being transformed into legitimate spaces of dissidence (Roberts, 2008 ). For various authors, therefore, public spaces are places where small divergences and agreements, carried out between individuals and groups in daily life, according to the rites of face-to-face interaction, or public sociability, gain visibility and are transformed into political/public “debates” (Bell, 2013 ; Dehaene & De Cauter, 2008 ; Jayne et al, 2006 ; Kallianos & Fumanti, 2021 ; Kärrholm & Wirdelöv, 2019 ; Schaller & Modan, 2005 ; Torronen & Karlsson, 2005 ).…”