Detecting opportunities: neighbourhood data dynamics for urban regeneration in Valladolid (Spain)

Abstract

Urban regeneration has become a priority for urban planning in Spain, because it is one of the best ways to foster a more sustainable, compact and mixed-use urban model, founded in the improvement of existing city. The Master Plan of Valladolid (Spain) has been an opportunity to tackle this objective by a thorough study of existing urban fabrics, in order to program future actions and projects. The built city was divided into units, and each of them was carefully analysed in order to identify opportunities for improvement, such as vacant spaces or deprived areas. Every regeneration action was then designed to also generate a positive impact on its surroundings, which requires knowing the needs and structural deficits of each neighbourhood. That’s why a homogeneous “neighbourhood data system” was created, in order to propose the most appropriate action for each case. However, "measuring" the city is a difficult task. There are different official sources of urban data, but they are not oriented to this kind of evaluation. For instance, census data have lost accuracy due to its new methodology (2011), and their level of disaggregation is often inadequate. Other sources such as Cadastre are aimed at tax purposes and they must therefore be reinterpreted.