The Metropolitan Centralities of Lima (Peru) as an Inhabited Space: A Qualitative Approach

Abstract

Studies on centralities in recent decades in Latin America have privileged the analysis of the urban structure and have paid little attention to the analysis of the inhabited space. This, in turn, requires greater attention, especially in the temporal and spatial dimensions of practices. This article proposes to overcome these limitations through comparative analysis, taking as case studies two of the main metropolitan-scale centralities in Lima (Peru): the commercial area of Mesa Redonda, and Mercado Central, located in the historical center of the city, with high diversity of activities where formal and informal commercial activities predominate; and 2) the financial center of San Isidro, located in a high-income district of the city. The methodology consisted of intensive and multidisciplinary qualitative fieldwork. The article demonstrates how inadequacies are configured in everyday life in the two centralities from the temporal and spatial relationship between practices and the built environment.