Corporate urbanism and São Paulo’ strategic master plan

social inclusion in the “lessons” from Paris?

Abstract

Between 2023 and 2024, São Paulo, the biggest city in the Southern Hemisphere, had its Strategic Master Plan reviewed by municipal legislators. The discussions, focusing on building potential coefficient, urban zoning, and building height, left little room for one of the central themes in contemporary urbanism of major Western metropolises: how to enhance social inclusion and diversity across the urban fabric of the municipality. This is a significant gap when addressing the right of access to the city for the most vulnerable segments of the population. Meanwhile, in Paris, developments in urban operations of ZACs (Zones d’Aménagement Concerté) continued to advance social urbanism, with diversity and social inclusion as central themes of urban public policies. Originally executed in urban operations, this practice has also migrated to the level of urban plots, fostering socially mixed-use buildings throughout the city, with a focus on the most affluent districts. This is not a comparison between the two cities, but we wonder whether there are lessons that São Paulo can learn from Parisian social urbanism.