The city as business

The current transformations of large cities have acquired a certain relevance in the urban research agenda. This article analyzes the new role of real estate capital in the development of large cities, analyzing the case of Salvador, the first capital and now the third largest Brazilian city. The text begins by discussing the literature on the impacts of changes associated with globalization in this type of cities. Among these changes, this paper highlights the abandonment by the State of much of its traditional functions of planning and urban management, which have been transferred to private actors, leading to an affirmation of private interests in housing production and reproduction of the city. This article shows how this process has ocurred for Salvador's case, with very adverse consequences for its urban structure and urban life.