Distrust and fear in the city. Relations between insecurity signs and spatial structure of Recife.
insecurity; fear; space syntax; urban form; Via Mangue; interface
This work aims to understand nexuses relating built form and insecurity signs in public spaces. The investigation is contextualized within the occupation history of the studied case, the neighbourhoods of Cabanga and Boa Viagem, Recife, Brazil, from the early 20th century to the major roadworks of 2016. The research evaluates how changes in the spatial structure of the city taken by Via Mangue seems to lead transformations of characteristics of the built environment in respect to insecurity signs. Besides the literature review, the methodological procedures applied to the research were Space Syntax Analysis and data collection regarding insecurity signs attached to buildings (cctv cameras, electrified fences, among others). The theoretical framework revealed a dichotomy between permeability and defensibility of space as a strategy to promote security, so as the role of the spatial configuration in these kinds of studies. The results suggest that changes in the city’s spatial structure coincide with the increasing use of insecurity signs aimed at setting private and public spaces apart, either through architecture itself or with elements attached to it. The real estate also shows signs of benefiting from the increase in accessibility. Although it is not a homogeneous tendency, the increase of potential movement in some parts of the city is followed by a mistrust of the public space, and, in a general view, the deviation from the principles recommended as favourable to urban animation and security.