The City and the Sea: Evolution and Transformation of a Controversial Relationship

Over the centuries, the relationship between the city and the sea has been transformed. Diverse factors (political, economic, social, scientific) have changed the way people see the sea, gradually turning the seafront from being a place of danger into a new development opportunity. In recent years, the demolition of restrictive structures and the construction of promenades along the waterfront has marked its opening to the horizon and contributed to giving a new face to the coastal cities. In addition, the economic crisis of the 1970s led to the decline of many industrial and port areas and the subsequent abandonment of several coastal areas. Since the 1980s, a series of actions began to restore these degraded areas. The various interventions, although different in origin and design methods, had in common the desire to restore the relationship between the city and the sea and the creation of new opportunities for urban, economic, and socio-cultural growth. This study traces the critical stages of a slow and complex process of opening cities to the sea and analyses the transformations from the 19th-century historical promenade into a territorial landmark, a fulcrum of urban, economic, and tourism development. It provides, through a comparative and critical analysis of the case studies, which include famous and egregious examples such as Barcelona and Bilbao, and less known and discrete destinations such as Vigo, as well as some Italian cases, an overview of the extensive experience of abandoned and re-used port areas and suggests a reflection on the city in general. Now more than ever, cities are in search of a new identity, alternative centralities, and environmental, social, and economic sustainability.