From slum to neighborhood: Informal Settlements, safety and presence of state in a mid- size city in the argentinean Patagonia

Abstract

This text is a result of one the dimensions tackled in the research started two years ago in Puerto Madryn, a mid-size city of the central part of the Argentinean Patagonia. With the general idea of looking into the dynamic and intense process of urbanisation of the city, we will show a part of the field work that exhibits the conflicts and changes in the transition from ‘slum to neighbourhood’ of the north-western informal settlement created in the last decade. The main goal is to show the tensions and differences between the demands of its inhabitants and the presence of the State in the two periods. The approach from an ‘urban safety and security’ perspective allows us to address some important issues from the point of view of the residents and their consequences in the everyday experience.