Will the platforms of 12 continue like this?

There are urban processes so old that local administrations pass and pass without resolving them, because as the popular saying goes ‘It is better by hook than by crook’. That is the reality of the platforms on both sides of Carrera 12, between streets 27 to 31 in Pereira, which have been occupied for years by vehicles and advertisements for commercial premises dedicated to automotive service.

It is better for the good ones and to be the one with the glasses; one, because there is no concrete project or space for the relocation of the people who are dedicated to this branch of the economy; two, because the POT is ambiguous and stays in generalities and three, because the urban imaginaries are very strong in this city and it is said that the area has owners, that it is hot and that it is better not to interfere.

Land Management Plan (POT)

As its name indicates, the idea is to order the city and among the benefits that this brings to the cities, as explained on the page of the Pereira Mayor’s Office, information that was published a little over a year ago, it is found that: seeks the rational use of land for the development of municipalities and their environmental sustainability. Also, contribute to improving the quality of life of citizens through access to roads, among others.

In the POT the prevalence of the general interest over the individual is established, so why should passers-by go down to the road in the already named area? Who sold them the space to put fences, tires, chains and tapes?

According to the information found on the Pereira Cómo Vamos page, point 7 of this document talks about ‘Location of priority areas for productive economic activities such as services, logistics and industry’. Among the problems that affect the habitability and sustainability of the territory is that the current deficit (for 2015) of urban land was 1.60 square meters per inhabitant and among the various causes for this was the invasion of the platforms.

Legal sections on the platforms

For a previous edition in which the subject was also the platforms, but from another point of view, the lawyer Clarena Valencia was consulted and commented: “(…) the platforms constitute public space, which immediately leads us to a series of obligations of public entities, since if a citizen suffers damage (…), an analysis must be carried out on whether it is feasible to attribute the responsibility of repairing those damages to the person who caused the damage”.

The specialist clarifies that the territorial entity (Municipality) must comply with some obligations of care, on the one hand, the Law assigns to the municipalities the responsibility of carrying out the conservation and maintenance of public roads destined for the movement of people, such as It happens in the case of the platforms.

In conclusion, in the event that a person suffers damage as a result of an accident, suffers injuries or even death that it can be determined that this was caused by an omission in the work of conserving and maintaining public roads, and that it was This is the one that created a risk for the pedestrian, it could be affirmed that there is a responsibility of the public entities for failure in the service, which leads to the payment of compensation for the damages.