The challenges of urban renewal. Ten lessons from the Catalan experience

Abstract

Catalonia has a long history of local level urban renewal. With the approval of the Law on neighbourhoods requiring special attention, considerable efforts have been made in order to extend these experiences to both metropolitan and regional spheres. Such commitment has led to the implementation of comprehensive renewal programmes in 117 neighbourhoods. The article analyses the objectives, results, and drawbacks of this urban policy, focusing especially on inter-administrative relations and multilevel governance. The text reflects upon the following aspects: the transversal vision on urban renewal; the selection process; the comprehensive nature of actions performed; the role of public investment; the relationship between regional and local administrations; the potentialities and challenges of shared financing; local community involvement; capitalisation of experiences; evaluation of results; adaptation to change.