Sustainable urban interventions in the rain forest: the experience of the city of Manaus in Brazil

Abstract

The historical downtown areas are places where once there was active urban life; however, nowadays the downtown areas are busy zones by day and empty dangerous spaces by night. It is crucial to study urban centralities to understand how to make cities more sustainable; it is vital to occupy areas already endowed with consolidated urban infrastructure rather than expand cities to suburban areas. The case of Downtown Manaus is quite similar to other cities, mainly because it has been systematically vacant, as research has shown. The main objective of this project is to reclaim this area for housing plus other mixed occupation, such as commercial, leisure and housing uses. The research methodology approach was theoretical–conceptual and empirical. As a result, the survey of vacant lots aimed identify each of the lot conditions and qualities. The investigation showed that many lots have a special appealing for housing. The proposal of small residential areas using the Pod Houses and a mixed-use approach, where residents can also use the space for commercial exploration, suits the focus on multiplicity within a city. Finally, on the public realm, repossession tactics focused on parks, bridges and parking lots aiming to recover degraded areas.