Gentrifying Rugosities in Urban Space

The Redevelopment Project of the Sorocabana Railway Heritage

Abstract

This article examines the redevelopment project of the Sorocabana Railway complex. To this end, a case study was conducted of the public hearing held in Sorocaba, which encompasses a 200,000-square-meter historical heritage site located in the city center. Founded in 1875 and officially listed by Condephaat in 2018, the area is currently undergoing a process of deterioration, with only a few structures still in operation. From the perspective of the concept of “roughness” (“rugosidades”) and Milton Santos’s theory of the two circuits of the economy (1997), the author discusses how these spatial legacies from the past shape contemporary urban dynamics. The proposed revitalization aims to transform the site into a hub for the creative economy, culture, and housing, integrating it with the Intercity Train (TIC). However, the preliminary analysis indicates that the project, grounded in Richard Florida’s theories (2002), prioritizes the attraction of new businesses and target groups at the expense of the memory of local railway workers. It is concluded that reducing identities, cultural expressions, and artistic practices to a strictly economistic and utilitarian logic ultimately constrains creativity, confining it to static and merely instrumental planning models.