Urban rehabilitation and hidden poverty: La Mariscal, Quito

Abstract

La Mariscal is a neighborhood located in the Northcenter of Quito immersed in urban rehabilitation dynamics since the beginning of this century. This article explores the impact of different kind of rehabilitation events that have taken place in the neighborhood and its incidence in the appearance of the phenomenon known as hidden poverty, the latter being evidenced through processes of impoverishment that experience certain families and in general the middle class located in the area. With the use of mixed research methods this article aims to show the reality of these populations as they are in conditions of economic instability, while the creation of value that has had the neighborhood and the emergence of new land uses, and practices associated with tourism have failed to benefit widely due to its geographical location, the type of goods, and services, and structural conditions related to the labor market. Thus, it is concluded that the current context of urban rehabilitation of this specific neighborhood, beyond provoking expulsion or gentrification processes, encourages these populations to deepen their situations of risk, concealment, impoverishment and social sinking.