The use of spatial syntax as a tool for scenario building: The case of Lapa District in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

Abstract

This paper explores the use of scenarios building as a resource for structuring the urban project process in a complex and open perspective in a design approach. It is based on a case study of the Lapa neighborhood in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil and is the product of an ongoing research theme on public policies and territory at the Urban and Regional Graduate Program (PROPUR) of Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). The method proposed includes the problematization of the project by scenarios vis-à-vis the space syntax analyses in order to establish the common points, as well as to generate data about accessibility and spatial integration. The intersection of these methodological approaches point out to the possibilities of syntax theory used toward the structuring of project process based on scenarios building by design. In doing so, we consider the following criteria: the local-global relationship; social integration; strategic dialogues; and co-responsibility on decision-making and new structures of governance. The main interest is to bring together for examination at the level of ideas distinct scenarios, as mental constructo drawn from social processes in order to highlight their differences and uncover distinct courses of action as guidelines for the project. The space syntax theory allows to link scenarios building by design from an imagery plan to a topological dimension of urban space.

Keywords: territory by design, urban project by scenarios, space syntax, Brazilian cities.