The city between the housing deficit, the latent vacant land and the eviction generated by the expansion of capital. The case of Calle Ayacucho (Medellín-Colombia)

Abstract

Ayacucho Street in the city of Medellin has become a space produced, colonized and re-stratified by real estate-financial capital and the State, denying the right to the city to inhabitants who demand a solution to the housing deficit, to the time expels them to the outskirts of the city. Real estate-financial capital plays a leading role in the current capitalist system. In its process of expansion, capital in collusion with the State, generates a conflict of interest with social groups, since they are torn between the reproduction of capital and the social reproduction of life. Therefore, while the contemporary planning instruments contemplate central spaces of the city for the development of real estate projects under the premise of the compact city, the interests of the private prevail over those of the less favored classes that they seek to solve, among other problems. , its housing deficit. At the same time, in an attempt to position Medellín city as a competitive platform, the State develops megaprojects that generate the eviction (expropriation) of some traditional inhabitants, to make way for inhabitants of more favored social classes.

Key words:  Urban renewal; Real estate-financial capital; Eviction