Metropolitan formation whithout planning

Suburban growth, market, and conflicts in the western expansion of the Rosario Metropolitan Area

Abstract

Metropolitan areas are territorial formations that arise from the intensification and interrelation of activities within an expanded space beyond the primary compact city. There comes a moment in the phases of transformation when this metropolitan formation accelerates, especially when territorial connection infrastructures transcend their role of mobility to become vectors of urban growth and enhance land use modalities. This shift towards a new territorial scale is what the article addresses, studying the western sector of the Metropolitan Area of Rosario. It begins with a historical analysis of the urbanization process, identifying the main catalysts of changes in land occupation and use; then focusing on the last two decades, particularly investigating the central role of the residential market as a promoter of new urbanizations, in contrast to outdated planning instruments or those that act as mere facilitators. Imbalances are recognized as a result of extensive sectors of rapid and discontinuous growth, supported by these radial territorial traces, without sufficient infrastructure and entirely dependent on employment and services from the primary city. A metropolitan formation without planning, as it lacks the sub-centralities and urban amenities typical of areas in an advanced state.