Malecón Yamesí: Recuperación de un espacio perdido en Zaragoza Antioquia

Abstract

The Yamesí Waterfront Project is developed in the municipality of Zaragoza, Antioquia, as a proposal to recover a lost space along the Nechí River. The intervention addresses the physical and symbolic deterioration of the riverfront, historically tied to the town’s social, economic, and cultural dynamics. Based on the urban theories of Roger Trancik (1986) and Elizabeth Macdonald (2018), the project proposes strategies to reconnect the city with its natural landscape through the creation of a riverside promenade that integrates fluvial infrastructure, local commerce, and public gathering spaces. The design seeks to restore physical, visual, and symbolic connections between the river and the urban fabric, applying concepts such as figure–ground, linkage, and place to re-signify a degraded area and transform it into a territorial connector. The proposal emphasizes spatial continuity, accessibility, and environmental sustainability, incorporating local materials and native vegetation. Thus, the Yamesí Waterfront not only revitalizes the Nechí River’s edge but also strengthens collective identity, fluvial mobility, and social cohesion, becoming a model for sustainable urban regeneration in the river towns of the Bajo Cauca region.