The regeneration of Spanish military real estate assets from the 1980s

Abstract

This work examines the regeneration of former military sites in Spain – and the specific case study of Madrid – as a valuable example of the tendency to commodify public assets to highlight two main dynamics. First, the alienation policies of military sites from the 1980s onwards have followed the general trend of neoliberal restructuring of the public bodies. Facing the state cuts in defence, the MoD is likely to sell the land it owns in the real estate market as a recurring measure of the austerity toolbox. Second, ancient military sites are high-consuming public land so they may boost relevant public-led urban regeneration processes of deprived neighbourhoods and long-term local prosperity and well-being. Nevertheless, the alienation policies have searched for immediate economic benefits for the central government and the military. These reasons underline the need to provide an updated examination of the Spanish case, which is apparently understudied in comparison with the emerging international research in the field of urban studies on the regeneration of former military sites, mostly in France, Italy, and the UK.