Parks of Belo – A renaissance (I)

It was not until quite recently, with all the talk about Global Warming and the need for an environmentally-friendly Eco-awareness, that the average Belohorizontino (citizen), started to feel committed with the preservation of parks and green areas around the city. It was somehow felt – maybe not only through widespread propaganda but also through local public policy – that, in order to help maintain parks well kept they would have to be attractive to the population, who in turn, would develop a bond – some sort of affection and a love of the place, thus acting to protect that public area for recurrent use.

During the 80's and the early 90's important parks and squares in Belo Horizonte became decrepit and run-down, a haven for street-dwellers and criminals who would keep the average citizen terrified of such places. Then the renaissance began – for a city which once was dubbed “The Garden City", first with the renovation of iconic Praça da Liberdade and then, although slowly and a with a few drawbacks, the gradual revitalization of many other parks “of a lesser importance”.

As an urban-planner myself and in agreement with Janes Jacobs, I understand that humans like the sight of other humans (and enjoy their company). (Indeed, it is very typical of belo-horizontinos or, for that matter, Brazilians, to drive around looking for a bar, skipping all the empty ones, until they find a place with enough people, that is, crowded, even if they have to wait in line to get a seat.) So, a big challenge for the city administrators has been to give appropriate uses to the squares so they will be always teeming with the “right kind of people”.

Here's a new and successful example, Praça (Square) Floriano Peixoto, in the Santa Efigênia neighborhood. It had been abandoned for ages until, last year, under a public-private partnership, where a business helps to maintain a public space in exchange for some tax deduction, Unimed, the giant health insurance cooperative, revamped the square completely. The project allowed for, among other things, a jogging track, an outdoor gym center, a playground and a few open air theatrical arenas (amphitheaters). Total Success! Every day, I drive by, at different times, and there you see the happy crowd. Kudos to Unimed and City Hall.