Zaragoza: : looking back, looking forward METREX Pablo Calvo y Ruata Luis A. Castellano Lafuente Diputación Provincial de Zaragoza METREX Szczecin 10th Anniversary 1996-2006 Conference 4º ESPACIO
1- Looking back
1.1- Zaragoza in the beginning of the 90 s In spite of its consolidation as a regional capital after the Autonomy Statute of 1982: A city trying to define its future Scarce metropolitan awareness Automotive industrial monoculture Non use of its location rent: weakness of the communications with the metropolis of Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Bilbao Highly defective communications through the Pyrenees High unemployment rate: about 13,5% Low protagonism in the national metropolitan concert in spite of being the 5 th Spanish city
1.2- Zaragoza after 90 s equator The beginnings of the metropolitan awareness: Approval of the I Strategic Plan of Zaragoza and its influence area: central city + 24 small towns. Objectives and worries: Zaragoza as a logistical city and regional metropolis. Intermetropolitan communications as a key factor Promotion of its attractive as a suitable entrepreneurial setting: towards the surpassing of its automotive monoculture developing new business parks and activities Worry about sustainability: rivers recovery, water, clean technologies and quality of life Promotion of Zaragoza as a creative city in art, humanism and mass media
Towards the definition, fitting and interaction of the 13 metropolitan articulation pieces: Most burning topics: Hopes about HST Need to develop the airport Worry about the entrepreneurial monotony unemployment rate increase (18,39% in 1996) and the Demand of the motorway North-South axis (Central Pyrenees/ France-Valencia) Reinforcement of the Ebro/Jalón axis position Uncertainty about future residential development in the surrounding area
1.3- Zaragoza in the change of Century New expectations and projects: Facing the HST beginning (October 2003) Madrid-Zaragoza- Lérida: future birth of new urban centralities Fight for the culmination of the great road infrastructures: the exasperating progression of works in the North-South axis Advance towards the consolidation of direct logistics: launching of the Logistics Area of Zaragoza (PLAZA) Worry about inverse logistics and recycling: basis for the future Technological Recycling Area (PTR) Towards a cosmopolitan architecture taste Identification of a project with great collective illusion: bid for the International EXPO 2008 Obtaining of a great event as the gateway to the future: EXPO 2008 Water and Sustainable Development (December 2004)
2- Looking forward
2.1- Zaragoza: : the challenge of a scale change Previous established basis (population growth, metropolitan awareness, improvement of communication infrastructures and equipments, strategic planning) and the catalysator effect of EXPO 2008, get progress from a comfortable and resigned regional capital status to a Southern Europe cosmopolitan metropolis Update of Strategic Plan of Zaragoza and its surrounding area (July 2006) as an expression of that change vocation Enlargement of the functional metropolitan area and implementation of a social, cultural, economic, environmental, infrastructural and identity progress climate New relation/cooperation scheme metropolis-province: creation of specifics organisms; Zaragoza, Cuarto Espacio; progress towards a Provincial Strategic Plan; new interregional synergies to impel the economic cluster Ebro Valley
2.2.1 A huge city growth and enlargement of the metropolitan area: The Urban Planning of Zaragoza includes 87.000 new dwellings at medium term: urban growth towards the South, and filling of areas previously occupied by industries, relocated in new business parks in the area Unusual residential development perspectives in the small towns in the first metropolitan crown: 57.000 new dwellings in 2012 horizon; risks of neglect its quality The growth crisis as a treat: Towards the overflow and empty out the central city and a slummed periphery? Need to control the phenomenon by a great agreement that orders an harmoniously compact, multifunctional and policentric growth in Zaragoza and its surrounding area
2.2.2 EXPO 2008 and its legacy: Its motto Water and Sustainable Development as an universality expression and extension of its effects beyond 2008 A 25 hectares site with pavillions designed thinking in its later use: offices, businesses, museums, leisure, administrative offices... A new metropolitan park (100 hectares) in the Ebro meander with hotels, thermal centres, botanical sites... A more than 1.500.000.000 investment As happened in the Spanish-French Exposition in 1908, a new central space will be developed with a singular urbanism, badge of the city in the 21 th Century One intangible issue: that every citizen will be involved with the growth of their city, becoming ambassadors of Zaragoza
2.2.3 Communication infrastructures: local, regional and international EXPO 2008 accelerate and assure the finish of 3 rd y 4 th ring roads, demanded many years ago Compromise the conclusion in 2008 of the North-South motorway (Pyrenees-Valencia) Impel a complementary regional motorway network to get cohesion to the metropolitan area Finish of the HST line to Barcelona (2007) and French border (2009) Urge the reopening of the old railway line Zaragoza-Canfranc-Oloron- Pau. French reticences New Pyrenees Railway Central Crossing, with a low height tunnel, as a key issue for the Zaragoza s logistics vocation. It must be being constructed ant 2016. Difficulties with France
2.2.4 Power of airport resources as an EXPO 2008 effect Improvements in the airport of Zaragoza: new passenger terminal, enlargement of the platform and outdoor urbanisation and parkings; improvements of equipments and services Power its cargo terminal, essential for the development of its neighbouring logistics platform PLAZA New airport in Huesca as Pyrenees gateway, key factor for the winter tourism increase Solid bet by the increase of destinations: special suitability of the airports of Zaragoza and Huesca for the low cost airlines
2.2.5 Commuter railway and light subway Definitive impel to the metropolitan transport re-ordenation demanded by the growth of the area and the commuter displacements city-surrounding area 2015 horizon: total conclusion of the transport system: commuter railway, light subway and bus in the metropolitan area overall Establishment of a Metropolitan Transport Consortium as the control entity Reordering of the public transport in the central city: improve of the global mobility, reduction of the emissions, strong bet by public transport, more pedestrian areas, intermodal points, dissuasive parkings...
2.2.6 Effects of the relocation and improvement of the former railway equipments: A new and strong peninsular railway node close to PLAZA (Logistics Area of Zaragoza), airport and the Trade Fair Building as a key factor for the logistics implementation Reinforcement of the railway piece with the construction of a new HST station in the airport There s a chance to develop a railway innovation cluster Promotion of an international trade fair about railway technologies and new developments
2.2.7 Milla Digital HST and EXPO 2008 offer huge surfaces in the intermodal station environs (+1.000.000 m 2 ) convertible into a metropolitan technological central space Participation in the project of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Zaragoza International Experts Committee with the presence of François Bar, Manuel Castells, Dennis Frenchman, Michael Joroff, Peter Hall, Véronique Kleck, Guido Martinotti, William Mitchell, Saskia Sassen, Ángela López and Pekka Himanen 3.616 new dwellings, 278.160 m 2 of tertiary uses, 231.785 m 2 of equipments and 337.051 m 2 of free areas developed with the common denominator of innovation and new technologies, to convert Zaragoza to a worlwide reference
2.2.8 Zaragoza and its fluvial system: EXPO 2008 and its motto (Water and Sustainable Development) allow the rediscovery of city rivers: Ebro, Gállego, Huerva and Canal Imperial de Aragón Ebro river becomes a citizen central space: integral recovery of its shores in harmony with EXPO 2008 developments More bridges among both shores: Millennium Bridge, pedestrian footbridge, waterwheel bridge and 4 th ring road bridge A 200.000.000 investment
2.2.9 A new architecture as a symbol of the scale change
2.2.10 New economic activities Consolidation in Aragón of a logistics network among Zaragoza (PLAZA), Huesca (PLHUS) and Teruel (PLATEA) with European and South American projection. The role of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Zaragoza Logistics Center Attraction of inverse logistics activities: Technological Recycling Area PTR (800 hectares) as a reference in the management of used goods and its later transformation into 2 nd generation products Environmental industries: hydrogen applied to the automobile, bio-fuel, solar and wind energy... New commerce, services and leisure activities that will attract visitors beyond the province: Puerto Venecia, IKEA, PLAZA Imperial...
2.2.11 New cultural equipments to create an outside projection Later cultural use of EXPO pavilions: Bridge Pavilion as an interactive museum Water Tower as Science Museum Fluvial Aquarium and Auditorium Spain Pavilion as Image and Cinema City Guarantee in Zaragoza the permanent UN International Water Secretariat, hosting international events such as International Decade for Action. Water for life (2005-2015) or V World Water Forum 2009 Goya s figure as the protagonist of a new museums and cultural offer
2.3- Some data and evolution of the metropolitan area Population age (%) Municipalities (including Zaragoza) Population 0-14 15-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 >65 Registered inmigrants 1996 25 649.973 14 16 16 21 17 16 4.454 (0,68%) 2006 50 824.288 13 11 17 23 17 18 67.822 (8,22%) Dwellings 1991-2001 Provincial unemployment rate (%) 1996-2006 Provincial GDP (thousands ) 1996-2003 Per capita income ( ) 1996-2003 263.275 18,39 10.831.182 8.910 365.830 6,55 17.592.940 12.998