Border Troubles: Urban Nature and The Remaking Of Public or Private Divides

Figure 2.
The current project plans are as follows: 
1) Achieving less car use. 
2) Organization of rainwater collection. 
3) Development of a mixed-use area based on decentralized electricity generation. 
4) Addressing density, housing, and transportation issues. Providing housing to middle-
income residents in particular. 
5) Provide access to green spaces for low-income residents 
6) To solve the "structural inequality of uneven development" of the city, build affordable 
housing, and create green spaces in the city center. 

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- 5 - 
Three different scenarios have been presented to the public. However, there is 
disagreement about how much and what kind of private intervention is needed to transform 
Two Rivers City Park into a functional urban space. There is tension over whether the 
green space will be lost or expanded during the implementation of the projects, and how 
much is "public" or "private". 
Thus, in Cape Town, top-down consultation processes left 
little room for alternatives. Besides, in Cape Town, while every project aims to make 
nature more functional and accessible, there is a false openness to the public.
 
Hellenikon Metropolitan Park, Athens 
Figure 3. Hellenikon Metropolitan Park, Athens. Source: Cartographic Unit, Durham 
University.
So, this area is a disputed plot of 620 ha, which hosted the National Airport of Greece until 
2001. Hellenikon is a public asset that should be privatized and used to create a new 
investment environment. In 2012, a new infrastructure plan was proposed to cover more 
than 50% of the total area. Later, the privatization of Hellenikon was facilitated. Therefore, 
the maintenance and management of all open communal areas and parks are entrusted to 
private organizations. 

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- 6 - 
For example, the work of re-planning, management, and organization of the territory was 
transferred first to the Republican Asset Development Fund, then to the SA company, and 
finally to the private developer LAMDA. Then the same LAMDA organization developed 
a "master plan". It left the following areas in the area (