Recently, the city of São Paulo witnessed two events involving spaces that were previously public and are now under private concession. The already renowned Virada Cultural Paulistana took place again after the initial years of the covid-19 pandemic, and had as one of its stages the new Vale do Anhangabaú. In addition, the Pacaembu complex - which recently ceased to be a public facility, became a concession and has been undergoing a series of renovations and transformations - hosted the ArPa Fair, an event that brought together a series of important galleries for exhibition, purchase and sale of artworks. Despite the different nature of these events, their processes arouse reflections upon the privatization model we are experiencing in cities today.
The privatization process basically consists of selling a public good to the private sector. However, according to Sabrina Durand in her investigative research entitled Privatização da Rua (Privatization of the Street), on the Vale do Anhangabaú project in São Paulo, this definition does not apply to what has been happening in the concessions of use practiced by city halls in recent times. The author quotes the sociologist Carlos Vainer, pointing out that the new logic established between the company and the public power legitimizes the direct appropriation of public power instruments by private groups by transforming the city into an economic subject.
