The impact of the infrastructure on the urban shell of modern Piraeus

Abstract

The focus point of this paper is the relation of the infrastructure with the planning and urban transformation of Piraeus during 19th century –a relation which is decisive for its urban development and determinative of the urban structure legible until today.The infrastructure works in Piraeus -especially after 1860- were not dictated only by the local needs (e.g. road construction, drainage, water supply, etc.) and the maritime facilities, but also by the wider requirements of railway network in the national level. The urban tissue of the modern city, the planning of which was based on the functional model of a regional centre -the commercial satellite of the capital Athens-, was able to absorb the weights (including the pressure of the remarquable economic development, the population explosion and the social transformations) to some degree. The consequent re-appraisal of the planning principles called successive transformations of the urban structure until early 20th century. On the other hand, the failure of the land policy was the main reason of the lack of free space, available for public investments. As a result, the infrastructure installations and equipment were not the proceeds of a planning programme. Their impact on the urban shell can be observed in different sectors. By suggestion: The planning procedure, which follows the dictates of the decisions made by the different bodies involved -with the negative results of the overlapping responsibities. The land uses lay-out, which is transformed and aligned with the new needs. The real estate status in the wider maritime front of Piraeus. The compulsory separation of some quarters due to the new “limits”, e.g. of the industrial sector, with the consequent distinctions in the social level. The main points for discuss and comparison are the effects -both positive and negative- on the urban structure of similar centres within the framework of the circumstances of 19th century. The ulterior interesting side could be the drawing of a parallel between 19th century and the present. Which will be the impact of the recent olympic works on the area?