Yesterday before departing Sao Paulo, our group met with Municipal Development Director Domingo Pires, and Planner/Advisory Urban Development Director Tomas Cortez Wissenbach at the Sao Paulo Urbanismo City Planning office. We were treated to an excellent overview of the many complexities of planning in Sao Paulo, including their unique process by which developers can buy exceptions to height limits through purchase of securities certificates (CEPACS) which are then sold on the stock exchange before they can be converted to air rights. Sao Paulo plans for multiple centralities, a diminished residential presence in the downtown areas, and long slow efforts to improve umpermitted favelas. The latter involves construction of large amounts of new public housing, but also includes very comprehensive attempts to improve the urban poor's sense of connection with the rest of the city socially, geographically, and through good transit options.
The master plan is called "Sao Paulo 2040: The City We All Want". Some of the long-range goals include greenways along both major rivers, a 15-minute walk to park facilities for everyone, a 30-minute or less commute for everyone, and regional commercial centers to ease some of the traffic and infrastructure loads on the city center. There are numerous incentives for partnering with private developers, and one surprising point was that only publicly-funded projects receive design review: if you're a private developer, no one weighs in on colors or materials, site standards only. Many city-financed public housing facilities are the result of design competitions held by the city. There are also several massive redevelopment areas in the works.
One striking component of Sao Paulo 2040 is a series of "Open City" initiatives, which explicitly address multiple measures for ensuring the future global presence of SP. These involve airport improvements and facilitating transportation connectivity with Europe, North America and the rest of the world, hosting world-level events, emphasizing tourism amenities and broadband for all. This is of course what all major cities desire, but few long-range plans so deliberately address the steps needed toward global prominence.
Our visit finished with an invitation to the rooftop of the 27-story Martinelli Building (home to the Planning office) for a last dramatic view of the miles upon miles of high-rise development, fading into haze and hills in every direction, that is the Sao Paulo megalopolis. Now onward to some leisure time in the coastal beauty of cobblestoned Paraty.
The master plan is called "Sao Paulo 2040: The City We All Want". Some of the long-range goals include greenways along both major rivers, a 15-minute walk to park facilities for everyone, a 30-minute or less commute for everyone, and regional commercial centers to ease some of the traffic and infrastructure loads on the city center. There are numerous incentives for partnering with private developers, and one surprising point was that only publicly-funded projects receive design review: if you're a private developer, no one weighs in on colors or materials, site standards only. Many city-financed public housing facilities are the result of design competitions held by the city. There are also several massive redevelopment areas in the works.
One striking component of Sao Paulo 2040 is a series of "Open City" initiatives, which explicitly address multiple measures for ensuring the future global presence of SP. These involve airport improvements and facilitating transportation connectivity with Europe, North America and the rest of the world, hosting world-level events, emphasizing tourism amenities and broadband for all. This is of course what all major cities desire, but few long-range plans so deliberately address the steps needed toward global prominence.
Our visit finished with an invitation to the rooftop of the 27-story Martinelli Building (home to the Planning office) for a last dramatic view of the miles upon miles of high-rise development, fading into haze and hills in every direction, that is the Sao Paulo megalopolis. Now onward to some leisure time in the coastal beauty of cobblestoned Paraty.
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