2016-330-AJT-TOU

1

The Potential of the City of Araguaína - TO to Touristic 1

Receptivity considering the Dynamics of its Urban Pattern 2

3

Touristic activity represents an important option as a social, economical and 4

cultural motivator for a specific area. But consistent tourism cannot exist without 5

the building of civility. Urban beauty and security should be seen as civility 6

factors. The city of Araguaína - TO developed itself with no order, which 7

contributed to its poor urban aesthetics. The city has a specific land use regulation 8

but there is no government inspection to accomplish it. There are obstacles on the 9

walkways that difficult pedestrian access, making many of them walk on the 10

streets risking their lives. With this in mind, the aim of this research was to 11

understand the perception that the city’s inhabitants have of the accessibility to the 12

walkways, their safety to the inhabitants and to the tourists. It was also verified if 13

they know that there is a specific regulation that sets the use of the walkways. The 14

method used in this research was bibliographic research intending theoretical 15

consistency. Furthermore, there were questionnaires applied to the Araguaína’s 16

population. 17

18

Key words: tourism, security, pedestrians. 19

20

21

Introduction 22

23

The city of Araguaina, having no natural touristic attractions, could direct attention 24

to the Business and Events Tourism. In spite of this possible potential, the city hardly has 25

basic infrastructure to develop tourism. 26

According to Yazigi (2003), the selection of a touristic destination is basically 27

determined by a set of goods and services called “civility factors”. The location has to 28

offer entertainment equipments like cinemas, theaters, libraries, squares and parks, 29

sanitation, urban cleanliness, well planned urban pattern. After all, the city has to offer 30

quality of life to its inhabitants, since it will only be an adequate place for tourists if it is 31

also to the people who live there. 32

2016-330-AJT-TOU

2

The urban space is not the only territory for tourism, but it is the most important, 1

being where people meet socially and culturally. The tourist, on an excursion, looks for 2

places that offer good ambience, and its absence, causing displeasure, can interrupt a trip. 3

Quality is always the best choice. 4

The city of Araguaina’s policy of urban development has as legal instruments a 5

Master Plan, (Plano Diretor), an Edification Code (Código de Edificações) and a 6

Sanitation Code (Código de Postura). These have the purpose to organize the fulfillment 7

of the social function of the city and the urban properties. But according to our previous 8

studies, which were the subject of our presentation at the XV Encuentro de Geografos de 9

America Latina in Cuba, it was observed that many walkways are not used in the 10

appropriate way, altering their main function as a place of foot traffic. Obstacles difficult 11

pedestrian access, making many of them walk on the streets risking their lives. The 12

question is: How can a city welcome tourists if it does not offer comfort and security to its 13

pedestrians? Therefore, the purpose of this research is to check the inhabitant’s opinion on 14

the accessibility to the pedestrian walkways and their safety to the inhabitants and tourists. 15

It was also verified if they know about the specific regulations that set the use of the 16

walkways. 17

18

Tourism and Urbanity 19

20

Accommodation, transport and gastronomy are the fundamentals to touristic 21

development, but are not enough to guarantee touristic demand. Traveling goes beyond. 22

Tourists also live the city, which then has to offer solutions for mobility, sustainability and 23

security, as the urbe is a place of meeting and social interaction. Furthermore, it is 24

important that the urban spaces are treasured by those who interact with them. This is why 25

the organization of urban spaces and their relationship with the inhabitants and tourists is 26

important, as they straighten links and reflect on people’s well being. 27

When we talk about space, we usually think about the measurable space in its three 28

dimensions. We seldom observe that this is only a concrete aspect of it. And what about 29

the people that live it? We live a city in such an obvious way,that its peculiarities do not 30

call our attention nor our questioning. (BOLLNOW, 2008; CARLOS, 2007). 31

Santos (2009) offers us a broader notion. He considers space as a set of “fixes” (a 32

bridge, a city, a house, a square, a library) and “fluxes”. For him, the fixes elements, fixed 33

in each place, can allow acts that change the place itself. New or renewed fluxes can 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

3

recreate social and environmental conditions, redefining places. However, nowadays “ the 1

fixes are becoming more artificial and more fixed to the ground; the fluxes are becoming 2

more varied, broader, numerous, faster” (“os fixos são cada vez mais artificiais e mais 3

fixados ao solo; os fluxos são cada vez mais diversos, mais amplos, mais numerosos, mais 4

rápidos” (p.62). But the author offers another possibility: the territorial configuration on 5

one hand and the social relations on the other. Meaning that the configuration of the 6

territory is not offered by the space, but by the life in it. Its real existence is possible only 7

through the social relations. 8

The urban space, represented by streets, walkways, buildings, squares, cars and 9

people, is presented ambivalently: as stimulator and as repressor.This space, according to 10

Bollnow (2008), is not a neutral and constant environment, ”but is fulfilled with meaning 11

in vital relations with opposite performances, and these meanings, in turn, change 12

according to the different places and regions of the space” (“mas é preenchido com 13

significados nas relações vitais de atuações opostas, e esses significados, por sua vez, 14

mudam de acordo com os diferentes lugares e regiões do espaço”). 15

According to Borja (2003) apud Souza (2010), cities can be divided into urbs, 16

civitas and polis. The urbs is the physical dimension defined by the human 17

agglomeration, in a territory of functional and social diversity and by its demographic 18

density. The civitas is the social dimension, and most important ,the place of citizenship. 19

Its base must be the equality of citizens of a heterogeneous society and prioritize the social 20

interaction and tolerance. And finally the polis representing the political dimension. It has 21

to be the local of political participation, proximity and representation of the society’s 22

common identity, as well as the opposition, mobilization, social expression and changes in 23

the relations of power. It is important, to a suitable urban environment, the existence and 24

the relationship between those three dimensions. 25

Observing contemporary cities , in general, it can be inferred that problems grow 26

faster than the possibilities of solution. Is the model of modern or postmodern city 27

corresponding to its inhabitants necessities? Does the urban reality allows it to be lived as 28

a human experience, individual and collective? Is it possible to turn urban spaces viable 29

to citizens and also offer a better quality of life, covering biological, psychological, 30

anthropological and social roots of men? 31

Cities built after universal principles have a restrictive character, where the 32

economics prevail over the politics, the well being and the symbolism. Likewise, the 33

greatest worry of planners, administrators and urban designers is with the city and its 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

4

physical territory, while no attention is given to the human dimension. Their suggestions 1

on planning, revitalization, occupation or space reorganization do not take into 2

consideration local and peculiar characteristics of the population, nor the way inhabitants 3

live, understand and imagine the space where they build their lives. Moreover, 4

administrators and planners guide their intervention policies by principles created for 5

almost a century ago, which emphasises business and not the improvement of living 6

conditions of the citizens (LIMENA, 2001). 7

Some elements are important to the understanding of the cities, the first of them is 8

the way to look at a city. Far from translating only partial images, it discloses “qualities” 9

of the urban space. A conscious look catches the imaginary present in each moment of 10

daily life.With this view of the city, it is possible to identify the relation that exists 11

between it and the thinking of oneself, between the public and private, “between the 12

intimate spaces and the big common urban spaces, between the rising of distinct forms of 13

sociability and their sustaining symbols” (“entre os espaços de intimidade e os grandes 14

espaços coletivos urbanos, entre a emergência de distintas formas de sociabilidade e os 15

signos que as sustentam”) LIMENA, 2001, p. 39). 16

When we observe a city, we can see its heterogeneity: The way of life, way of living, 17

how the land is used by the different economic activities and many others. On one side 18

there are the favelas, spread out on public or legal disputed areas, where building is 19

disorganized and has little or no infrastructure. On the other side are the middle and high 20

class apartments, the two story houses and the mansions along green streets. In the 21

“noble” neighbourhoods the streets are empty, in the “popular” ones the street is almost an 22

extension of the house. This contradictory and unequal way of occupying spaces is the 23

reflex of the social inequality still present specially in developing countries. 24

It is also important to reinsert, in the analysis of the cities, the relationship between 25

time and space, which is frequently forgotten. The city’s rhythm defines people’s lives in 26

such a way that they lose identification with the place and other people. Their life change 27

as fast as the city grows. The places of meeting, partying and entertainment almost 28

disappear, playing on the streets decreases, trees are cut and green squares turned into 29

concrete (CARLOS, 2007). 30

After the Second World War, to maintain capitalism and democracy, the countries’s 31

policies had to focus on employment, good housing conditions, social security, welfare 32

and opportunities to build a better future. Therefore reconstruction, reformulation, and 33

renewal of the urban pattern became an essential ingredient to realize that project 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

5

(HARVEY, 1992). In Europe, the strategies to reconstruct the cities varied according to 1

the places and the amount of destruction during the war, according to the political control 2

or to the commitment of the State to the well being of its citizens. England, for instance, 3

adopted a rigorous planning legislation, restricting and substituting suburbanization by 4

planned development of new cities. Steps were taken to eliminate miserable housing, to 5

build houses, hospitals, schools, factories, by rational planning procedures. According to 6

Harvey (1992) these procedures reflected the preoccupation, specified in laws, to 7

rationalize space standards and circulation systems in order to promote equality, at least of 8

opportunities, economic growth and well being. 9

While many European countries followed the British solution, the United States 10

created a very different urban renovation. The fast and uncontrolled suburbanization was 11

developed by the private sector, but with subsidy of housing programs supported by 12

government resources and by public investments in the construction of roads and other 13

infrastructures. To recover the deterioration of the cities’s centers, the American strategy 14

was the demolition and reconstruction of these spaces. In this way,the metropolitan area of 15

New York was recreated by the building of highways and bridges, the planning of parks 16

and urban renewal. 17

Even though the solutions found in Europe and the United States were different, 18

Harvey considers that it would be wrong and unfair to state that the “modernist” solutions 19

found to the dilemma of post war urban development and redevelopment have been a 20

failure. Cities destroyed by the war were quickly reconstructed and there was reasonable 21

exit in reconstituting the urban pattern, jobs were preserved and therefore contributed to 22

the social well being, improving social material equipments and , in general, the capitalist 23

social order, threatened in 1945, was maintained. 24

Jacobs (2000), unlike Harvey, considered the reconstruction of the American cities 25

not as reconstruction, but as devastation. For her, the projects for people with low income 26

became centers for delinquency, vandalism and social abandonment. She also described 27

the housing projects for medium income population as “wonders of stupidity and 28

subjection, deprived of all joy or vitality of city life” and the upper class projects as being 29

of “tasteless vulgarity”. According to her, cultural centers would be incapable of 30

maintaining a good bookstore, civic centers would be visited only by vagabonds and 31

places of foot traffic “would get people to nowhere”. She criticized the growth of car 32

traffic and the modernist urban ideology that praises personal independent work and 33

separates facilities, creating lifeless cities with no people. 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

6

Like Jacobs, other authors like Gehl (2013), Santos (2009) and Lefebvre (2001), 1

criticize modernists for changing the focus to individual constructions, rejecting the city 2

and its space. Along with modernism during the 1960s, the automobile industry boom 3

promoted an invasion of cars in the cities all over the world, causing them great damages 4

in terms of quality. 5

Since the 1960s, for more than half a century, researchers and scholars have 6

developed studies and discussed about the life and the death of the cities contributing to 7

the progress of practical urban planning and traffic planning. As a consequence, many 8

urban areas in the world created condition for urban life and pedestrians,giving less 9

priority to the traffic of cars. But many urban areas, specially in the third world, continue 10

with traffic problems and its increase. 11

In spite of that, human dimension has been forgotten and overlooked by urban 12

planning on most of the cities of the world. No priority has been given to pedestrian areas, 13

public entertainment areas and to the purpose of the urban space as a meeting point of the 14

inhabitants and tourists. The people who still use the city space are mostly badly treated 15

by limited spaces, obstacles, pollution, noise, dirt, risk of accidents, among others. 16

According to Yásigi (2003, p.38) the city ”offers rich possibilities of exchange and 17

opportunities to grow: they are, primarily, the space of the development of the 18

civilization”.(“propicia ricas possibilidades de trocas e oportunidades de crescimento: 19

elas são o espaço de desenvolvimento da civilização, por excelência”). And the author 20

continues, the building of civilization in the city must have as principles the human 21

condition and its physical dimension above all interests on development; the relation city-22

democracy; preservation of memory; offering of public spaces with quality, never 23

privatizing them; basic infrastructure system; constant fight against crime; abundance of 24

vegetation and aesthetic beauty. Conceptualize quality of life in urban spaces is hard to 25

measure. 26

It can be said, in the first place, that quality in the city area is the result that 27

combines determined general characteristics, among them security, environmental 28

quality, mobility and entertainment opportunities. Special attention has to be given to the 29

residents differences, specially to age differences and physical limitations. These 30

characteristics provide hospitality to the urban space, which is an important virtue of 31

citizens and essential to tourism. Urbanity and citizenship are historically, etymologically 32

and culturally linked to the cities, therefore also linked to the very nature of hospitality. 33

2016-330-AJT-TOU

7

The city has to stimulate and to welcome. Without these conditions neither civilization nor 1

tourism can be mentioned. 2

Observing the urban pattern of the majority of the Brazilian cities, we can infer that 3

city managers disregard the importance of the organization of the urban space and its 4

influence, when appropriate, in the tourists permanence and the well being of its 5

inhabitants. We are not only pointing at the aesthetic aspect of our cities but at the 6

government indifference to the public property, violence, corruption, social inequality, 7

incomprehension of democracy among others (YAZIGI, 2003). Maybe the major problem 8

of public management lies on the choosing of planners and administrators considering 9

their political activity instead of their technical knowledge. The city of Araguaina follows 10

that pattern. 11

12

13

Business and Events Tourism, the City and the Tourist 14

15

Events and business tourism is considered a touristic activity because it uses all the 16

transportation structure, lodging facilities, food and drink stores of the location it takes 17

place, stimulating local business. Because of this it contributes considerably to social and 18

economic development of a city and also to the region where it happens. The benefits it 19

brings are new jobs, qualification of the workforce, redistribution of wealth, attraction of 20

foreign investments, tax collecting increase and many others. All these aspects, if well 21

managed by the government, will improve the inhabitant’s quality of life. Moreover, 22

business and events tourism helps to advertise natural, cultural and social attractions of the 23

region that houses the event and even uses the resources when they are not visited or 24

known by recreational tourists. 25

According to the Ministry of Tourism data (2010), the average amount of time a 26

recreational tourist spends in a place is of twelve days and spends around U$ 80.6 per day. 27

Unlike the business and events tourist, whose stay is shorter. He/she stays around eight 28

days, but spends around U$ 112.9 per day. Furthermore, circa fifty per cent of these 29

tourists travel accompanied, resulting in an expressive increase of money circulation in the 30

locality. 31

Choosing a city to host an event involves many factors. Some of them, according to 32

Canton (2009), are its attractions, facilities and accesses that guarantee people’s 33

circulation, in and out of the city. Moreover, we must remember that cities are attractive to 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

8

tourism by all they represent as works of human societies, like meeting places, of comings 1

and goings, of the happening in general. In addition, the organization, urban design, the 2

care with public spaces quality and the city’s management that provides good orientation 3

signs, comfort, security and accessibility also reflect the hospitality expected by tourists. 4

The tourist has to be satisfied, but expectations and behavior of the inhabitants of the 5

receptor place cannot be ignored. The city, conceived in that way, will have a great 6

opportunity to heat up its economy and to develop itself. Moreover, the hosting of events 7

and the business and tourist development can also contribute to the community’s cultural 8

enrichment through the exchange between local people and the participants. 9

The tourist is a kind of flaneur1. “Wandering” through the streets allows the tourist to 10

observe the historical and cultural details of the urbe. It is where he/she improves his 11

relation with space, time and with the other. But to walk through the cities demands more 12

than legs and feet. Demands walkways where it is possible to walk without many 13

interruptions or obstacles. A walk, to be comfortable and enjoyable, needs pedestrian 14

walkways reasonably free and unobstructed, with no need to divert or to be pushed by 15

others. It must also be remembered that disabled people, elders and children require 16

special attention to walk without difficulties. Likewise, people with groceries cars, baby 17

strollers and walkers need more space (GEHL, 2013). 18

Interruptions without purpose on walkways in the majority of the cities of the world 19

force pedestrians to divert and walk up and down stairs, risking their lives. This is a 20

constant in the city of Araguaina. 21

22

23

Urban context: Araguaina - Its Uses and Space Organization 24

25

The region where nowadays is the city of Araguaina (Fig 1) was inhabited by the 26

Carajas indian tribe. Its development, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography 27

and Statistics (IBGE), startet in 1876 with the arrival of Joao Batista da Silva and his 28

family, from the State of Piaui. Afterwards, with the arrival of other families, the 29

settlement struggled with the absence of roads, geographical and climatic challenging 30

conditions (IBGE,2014). In 1953 Araguaina, previously named Lontra, was upgraded to 31

District and in 1958 to City of Araguaina. It’s urban development process followed no 32

1A person that wanders through a city without a visible aim, only paying attention to local history

and looking for aesthetics and erotic adventures (WHITE, 2001).

2016-330-AJT-TOU

9

rules. It was only after 1960, with the building of the Belem-Brasilia highway (BR-153), 1

one of the most important in northern Brazil, that the city achieved the conditions to start 2

its economical and social development. 3

4

Figure 1. Brazilian political map and the State of Tocantins 5

6

Source: https://www.google.com.br/search?q=mapa+brasil+e+tocantins&biw= 7

1366&bih=657&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwigso3hkZvLAhWEDJAKHT53AS8

EQ_AUIBigB#imgrc=WW4cJQkPvQnwTM%3A 9

10

The city of Araguaina ( Figure 2), is located on a highway junction and about 380 11

km far from Palmas, the capital city of Tocantins State. It has about 170,000 inhabitants, 12

according to IBGE (2015), being the second larger city of the State. Besides, it is 13

strategically situated, what makes it the most important city in an area of around 1.8 14

million inhabitants and it has direct commercial relations with cities of the States of 15

Tocantins, Maranhão and Pará. Furthermore, it is surrounded by small, medium and big 16

farms that contribute to the economical development of the city through agriculture and 17

cattle raising (IBGE, 2014), turning Araguaina currently into the biggest economy of the 18

State of Tocantins. 19

20

21

22

2016-330-AJT-TOU

10

Figure 2. Partial view of the city of Araguaína 1

2

Source: Author’s personal archive. 3

4

Despite the positive economic data, the city of Araguaina and the State of 5

Tocantins, in general, also present negative indexes. Social inequality can be seen in daily 6

life that, along with poverty, high illiteracy rates, violence against elders and the 7

consuming of licit and illicit drugs. Government neglect toward social and economical 8

conditions of the majority of the population is observed by the absence of public policies 9

that could improve the inhabitant’s quality of life. 10

Although the construction of the Belem-Brasilia highway 2 , that crosses the city of 11

Araguaina, has promoted the development of the region, it also brought with it illnesses. 12

According to Yázigi (2003, p. 63), during its construction the worst kind of occupation 13

and growth took place in the city, since the highway becomes the main avenue, and the 14

pioneers “do whatever, wherever and how they want” (“fazem o quê, onde e como 15

querem”) , contributing with the city’s unruled occupation. 16

Another negative aspect of the city lies in its urban pattern. As previously 17

mentioned, the city’s occupation and building followed no rules and very little has been 18

done by its government to improve this reality. Even though the city has specific 19

regulations that set its occupation, very little has effectively been done. Furthermore, what 20

can be seen is a “privatization” and disrespect of some public spaces, and in some cases 21

even the law is not observed. 22

All that disregard causes unfavorable consequences to urbanism and to the 23

landscape. It produces façades with no aesthetic and neglected, visual pollution due to 24

2 It is the main link between the Brazilian middle-north and the center- south geo-economic region.

The highway BR-156 is 4,355 km long.

2016-330-AJT-TOU

11

excess, and absence of regulation of publicity, aerial electricity wiring entanglement, 1

absence of trees on the streets and of walkways pavement. What can be the result of this 2

picture in terms of tourism? 3

Walking through the city it can be observed that the walkways are occupied by street 4

vendors, store goods and inhabitants that use them for inappropriate purposes. Fig. 3 and 5

4. These obstacles difficult free pedestrian access and offer no safety to foot traffic. The 6

presence of street vendors on the walkways, for instance, is an obstacle to the traffic of 7

people. The walkways, when occupied with tents, chairs, tables, boxes and other goods 8

create a polluted urban scenery and a disorganized and illegal trade. According to Yázigi 9

(2003, p. 362), the walkway, more than a public space, “ has been turned into a part of 10

the capitalist process of production, as movement of goods and added value”, (vem sendo 11

convertida em parte do processo de produção capitalista, enquanto circulação de 12

mercadorias e mais valia”). Thus the government favours interests of the capital, not 13

inspecting and intervening on private activities that take over the public space. 14

15

Figure 3. Walkway in the central area. Figure 4. Barbecue selling on a walkway 16

17

Source: Author’s private archive Source: Autor’s private archive 18

19

It is necessary to remember that the quality of the urban scenery interests, 20

primarily, its inhabitants and only their appreciation of the spaces will, eventually, call 21

the attention of tourists, visitors and passers by. 22

The city of Araguaina has no calling to tourism, it offers no relevant natural or other 23

attractions that could contribute to the development of tourism. But because of its 24

economic characteristic and its capacity to reach around 1.8 million people, it could invest 25

in events and business tourism. 26

27

2016-330-AJT-TOU

12

Methodology Procedures and Results 1

2

The ground research was oriented by the interest of dealing, systematically, with all 3

data that were possible to collect, regarding the use of walkways by pedestrians and 4

stores, in general, in the city of Araguaina -TO, through the view of its inhabitants. 5

Therefore, the drawing or outlining of the present research was descriptive-exploratory 6

since this method allows a larger view of the object of research as well as the data 7

collecting or survey. According to Freitas et al. (2000), the survey enables the 8

acquirement of elements that show characteristics, opinions or actions regarding a specific 9

theme, of the people that represent a certain population. The means to obtain these data 10

was the questionnaire, as the purpose was “to produce quantitative descriptions” (produzir 11

descrições quantitativas) (p. 105) that facilitates the gathering of data with larger groups 12

of people. 13

A semi-structured questionnaire, here attached, was used as instrument to collect 14

data. The purpose of the opening four questions was to characterize socially and 15

demographically the respondents, asking their age, address, gender, level of education 16

and average income. The second part, involving the questions 5 to 12, investigated the 17

situation of foot traffic places, the knowledge of specific regulation that sets their use 18

and their level of safety to pedestrians and tourists. 19

The sample that answered the questionnaires was of 227 participants, male and 20

female, older than 18 years old, with no distinction of creed, ethnic group or socio-21

economic level. The amount of 227 persons was reached through the chi-square 22

hypothesis test, with the minimum of five (5) observations in each cell (5 x 5,25 x5 = 23

150). In this case 150 respondents would be an adequate amount. However, considering 24

the possibility of an answer to be very uncommon and infrequent, which could deform the 25

scale, the sample of 227 people was decided on. 26

The socio-demographic profile of the sample shows that its majority is between 18 27

and 28 years old (53%); female (60%); level of education - with incomplete higher 28

education (40%) and income until R$ 1,000 (U$ 270). As the questionnaire was 29

randomly applied the neighbourhoods of the respondents were diverse. 30

When walking through the city it can be observed that many pedestrians, even 31

though there are walkways, walk on the streets. For this reason the questionnaire 32

respondents were asked if they walk on the streets or on the walkways when walking 33

2016-330-AJT-TOU

13

through the city. 56.4% answered that they usually walk on the walkways, 23% answered 1

that they walk on the street, and 20.6% alternate between the streets and the walkways. 2

When asked if in their neighbourhood there are many areas with no walkways, 69% 3

of the respondents answered yes, there are many areas without walkways. And 31% 4

answered no, there are no areas without walkways. 5

About the respondent’s perception on the great number of obstacles present on the 6

walkways, the great majority (94%) answered yes. Only 6% answered no ( Fig.5). 7

8

Figure 5. Are there many obstacles on the walkways? 9

10

11

When asked about their knowledge of the existence of regulations that stipulate that 12

walkways must be safe and give free access to pedestrians, the majority (64%) answered 13

that they know of those regulations. And 34% have no knowledge of it (Fig. 6). 14

15

Figure 6. Are there regulations that set the use of the walkways? 16

17

18

2016-330-AJT-TOU

14

In relation to the question of the safety offered to the tourists that walk on the 1

walkways, 94% respondents answered that the walkways are not safe to tourists. 2

3

Figure 7. Are walkways safe to the tourists? 4

5

6

7

Final Considerations 8

9

We believe that the greatest challenge to build a city that offers quality of life to the 10

residents, and consequently to the tourists, is to establish an order on the public sphere 11

and of the exercise of citizenship by the population. Only people that live the democracy 12

deeply have public managers that prioritize, firstly the population, and also have citizens 13

capable of exercising citizenship freely. For now this is not the case of Brazil. 14

What can be observed, by the result of the survey, is that the vast majority of the 15

respondents understand that a walkway with obstacles or the absence of a walkway does 16

not offer safety to pedestrians and tourists. Furthermore, the majority of the respondents 17

are aware of the existence of regulations that do not permit the inadequate use of 18

pedestrian transit areas and even so they do not demand inspection and accomplishment 19

by the public managers. The unanswered question is: Are the inhabitants exercising their 20

citizenship? Or maybe those who were born in disorganized environments become so used 21

to an environment without ethics and aesthetics that they do not notice or are not bothered 22

by it? 23

Our criticism on the absence of ethics and urban aesthetics, and specially to the 24

improper use of the walkways of the city of Araguaina, is made with the purpose of 25

looking for a new socio-geographical order, against the formal model of development and 26

of urban organization established here and the search for a true social justice. It is 27

2016-330-AJT-TOU

15

important to reassure that poor people do not lack of ethics or aesthetics, but poverty does. 1

It takes the dignity from the poor. 2

The residents should be aware of the city’s regulations, to avoid misrepresenting 3

the development order and organization, capacitate technically the public servants and 4

inspect, to avoid the risk of arbitrariness by businessmen or inhabitants towards the 5

community. Among them, the incorrect use of the pedestrian areas, construction works in 6

disagreement with the regulations established, visual pollution, excess of noise and all 7

what can harm the inhabitant’s quality of life. 8

However, if the city government does not seriously face soil degradation, poverty, 9

uncontrolled occupation of public spaces - without the organization of the territory in all 10

its complexity - the creating of a touristic demand to the city will hardly happen, whether 11

events or business tourism or any other opportunity the activity creates. It is necessary to 12

remember that the landscape is a development factor and of interest, on the first place, of 13

its own inhabitants, and only their appreciation of the spaces will, eventually, call the 14

attention of tourists and visitors. 15

16

17

References 18

19

Benevolo, L. História da cidade. 4. ed. São Paulo: Editora Perspectiva, 2005. 20

Bollnow, O. F. O homem e o espaço. Tradução de Aloísio Leoni Schmid. Curitiba: 21

Editora UFPR, 2008. 22

Carlos, A. F. A. A cidade. 8. ed. 1ª reimpressão. São Paulo: Contexto, 2007. 23

Duvignaud, J. A solidariedade. São Paulo: Instituto Piaget, 1995. 24

Freitas, H; Oliveira, M; Saccol, A. Z.; Moscarola, J. O método de pesquisa survey. 25

Revista de Administração, São Paulo, v. 35, n. 3, p.105-112, jul. 2000. Disponível 26

em: http://www.ufrgs.br/gianti/files/artigos/2000/2000_092_RAUSP.PDF. Acesso 27

em: 23 jan. 2016. 28

Harvey, D. Condição Pós-moderna: uma pesquisa sobre as origens da mudança cultural. 29

18ª ed. São Paulo: Edições Loyola, 1992. 30

_______. A produção capitalista do espaço. São Paulo: Annablume, 2005. 31

Jacobs, J. A morte e vida das grandes cidades. São Paulo: Martins Fontes, 2000. 32

Krippendorf, J. Sociologia do Turismo: para uma nova compreensão do lazer e das 33

viagens. 3.ed. São Paulo: Aleph, 2003. 34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

16

Lefebvre, H. A revolução urbana. Tradução de Sérgio Martins. Belo Horizonte: Ed. 1

UFMG,1999). 2

_________, H. O direito à cidade. Tradução Rubens Eduardo Frias. São Paulo: Centauro, 3

2001. 4

Limena, M. M. C. Cidades complexas no século XXI: ciência, técnica e arte. São Paulo 5

em Perspectiva, 15(3), 2001. 6

Lynch, K. A boa forma da cidade. Tradução: Jorge Manuel Costa Almeida e Pinho. 7

Lisboa: EDIÇÕES 70, Lda, 2007. 8

Ministério do Turismo. Turismo de negócios & eventos: orientações básicas. 2. ed. 9

Brasília, 2010. Disponível em: 10

http://www.turismo.gov.br/sites/default/turismo/o_ministerio/publicacoes/downloads11

_publicacoes/Turismo_de_Negocios_e_Eventos_Orientacoes_Basicas.pdf. Acesso 12

em: 22 jan. 2016. 13

Nogueira, M. A. L. A cidade imaginada ou o imaginário da cidade. História, Ciências, 14

Saúde-Manguinhos. V (1): 115-123. Mar.-jun, 1998. Disponível em: 15

<http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0104-16

5970199800010000&script=sci_arttext>. Acesso em: 28 set. 2013. 17

Santos, M. A natureza do espaço: Técnica e Tempo, Razão e Emoção. 4. ed. reimpr. São 18

Paulo: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 2009. (Coleção Milton Santos; 1). 19

________, M. Da totalidade ao lugar. 1. ed. 1. reimp. São Paulo: Editora da Universidade 20

de São Paulo, 2008. 21

Sousa, C. A. Do cheio para o vazio: metodologia e estratégia na avaliação de espaços 22

urbanos obsoletos. Lisboa: Instituto Superior Técnico,2010. 23

Turazzi, M. I. Paisagem construída: fotografia e memória dos “melhoramentos urbanos” 24

na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Belo Horizonte: VARIA HISTÓRIA, 2008. vol. 22, 25

nº35: p.64-78. 26

Veal, A. J. Metodologia de pesquisa em lazer e turismo. Tradução Gleice Guerra, Mariana 27

Aldrigui. São Paulo: Aleph, 2011. 28

White, E. Flaneur: um passeio pelos paradoxos de Paris. São Paulo: Companhia das 29

Letras, 2001. 30

Yázigi, E. Civilização urbana, planejamento e turismo: discípulos do amanhecer. São 31

Paulo: Contexto, 2003. 32

______, E. Turismo: uma esperança condicional. São Paulo: Global Editora, 2003. 33

34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

17

Appendix 1

2

Questionnaire 3

4

5

1. Age:______________years old. 6

7

2. In what neighbourhood do you live?_______________________ 8

9

3. Gender: ( ) female ( ) Male ( )other 10

11

4. Level of education: ( ) Completed Elementary School ( ) Incomplete Elementary 12

School ( ) Completed High School ( ) Incomplete High School ( ) Undergraduate 13

( ) Incomplete Undergraduate ( ) Graduate 14

15

5. Average income: ( ) 1,000 Reais (R$) or less ( ) 1,001 to 2,000 R$ ( ) 2,001 to 16

3,000 R$ ( ) 3,001 to 4,000 R$ ( ) more than 4,001 R$ 17

18

6. When you walk through the city, you walk : ( ) On the street ( ) On the walkways 19

If on the street, why?_______________________ 20

21

7. In the sector you live, are there many places without walkways? ( ) YES ( ) NO 22

23

8. Do you think that our walkways have many obstacles? (street lights, store goods, steps, 24

etc)? ( ) YES ( )NO 25

26

9. Do you think that people with reduced mobility (elderly, people with special needs, etc) 27

are able to easily move around our walkways? ( ) YES ( )NO 28

29

10. Do you know if there are laws/ regulations that require that the walkways offer safety 30

and free access to pedestrians? ( ) YES ( ) NO 31

32

11. Do you think that the walkways should be used only by pedestrians? ( ) YES ( )NO 33

34

2016-330-AJT-TOU

18

12. Do you think that our walkways offer safety to pedestrians? ( )YES ( ) NO 1

2

13. If tourists visit Araguina, do you think they are safe walking on our walkways? 3

( ) YES ( ) NO 4