The relationship between the port and the city is complex and diverse. While the port is an important vector of activities that contribute to the attractiveness, particularly in terms of tourism, of the city that “hosts” it, it nevertheless generates a certain number of negative impacts (noise, air pollution, traffic congestion, etc). To resolve this contradiction, strong links between local government and the port authority are needed. Beyond that, the restructuring of the activity and therefore of the port areas is part of a dialectic of importance with the local authorities: ports are in fact becoming urban planners and developers.
It is in this respect and as a follow-up to the December conference of the Mediterranean urban planners network that AVITEM will participate to the Valencia Conference from 7 to 9 February on the restructuring of historic urban ports. The programme will present the economic dimension of port-city-waterfront links, the new architecture of relations between the city and the port, the place given to citizen dialogue and will highlight models of urban-port transformations such as Bilbao, Toronto, Marseille and Stockholm. Finally, the geography of Spanish ports will be examined through the prism of history and the eyes of institutions.