The landscape in the public space as an integration medium between the city and the water: The case of the La Plata region, Argentina

This article argues that the current form of urban growth together with a fragmented urban environment and the lack of proposals on public spaces would mean a loss in the values of landscape integration, mainly in the public spaces adjacent to the watercourses. The case study is La Plata region, Argentina, in order to verify the existing separation between the water courses and residential urban area and, therefore, one of its characteristic landscapes. For this, the research focuses particularly on those urban open spaces adjacent to watercourses, conceived as key elements and potential triggers for habitat improvement. In this context, in which the city tends to dispersion, it is worth asking how to intervene in these spaces in a way that improves the built environment. The methodology identifies the fundamental characteristics of urban expansion to understand the logics of expansion and the main forms and elements that make up the landscape. From this, levels of integration are assigned to the water courses throughout their journey. And finally, from the notion of landscape, it will be proposed strategies for the creation of a water network and green spaces that respond to the new demands of the population.