Popular action for recovery of the publicspace

Popular action for recovery of the publicspace

The Oro Negro residents established a class action, with Estefania Bravo as plaintiff. They are claiming for the occupation of public space by five houses. That situation have been happening since three years, despite of the multiple complaint made to the municipal administration, it hasn´t done anything yet.

The plaintiff made an announcement about the problem, she said that according to article number five, section two of the ninth law provided in 1989, the city´s public space is constituted by the needed areas for pedestrian and vehicle circulation, besides all the zones where the common interest be representative and convenient, that constitute spaces for the use and benefit. She also said she pretends the application of articles number 82 and 88 of Political Constitution, which says:

“It is the duty of the State to watch over the protection of the integrity of public space and for its assignment to common use, which has priority over the individual interest. Public entities will participate in the profits generated by their urban planning activities and will regulate the use of the soil and the urban air space in order to protect the common interest”, “The law will regulate popular actions for the protection of collective rights and interests related to the homeland, space, public safety and health, administrative morality, the environment, free economic competition, and other areas of similar nature defined in it”.

Estefania added that to establish the class action was necessary, because the houses located on the sidewalks put the pedestrians in a big risk, they must walk on the street exposing themselves to an accident caused for the vehicular traffic. This problem is causing another one related with the solid waste produced for the people who live in that houses, they put the garbage outside the house in not allowed days by the sanitation company “Empresas Públicas de Armenia - EPA”, generating a nasty smell and pest invasion, causing risk for health and breaking the law who regulate collective right to have a healthy environment.

The health department of Armenia told that respect the pest invasion, the citizens can inform the cases, through a formal request addressed to Public Health Office.

The space’s owners where the houses are located said that doesn´t know the people that are living there.

For: Juliana Rivera Forero, Laura Juliana Palacio, Estefanía Bravo Montoya, Juliana Álvarez Gómez y Mónica Andrea Parra Padilla.