Mimiu – a possible urban action area in the integrated urban development of Ploieşti

Abstract

The integrated urban development currently represents the “tip of the spear” of urban planning, promoted by all the structures of the European Union. The principles of this new movement have been established in the table of contents of the Leipzig Charter on Sustainable European Cities (2007), adopted at the Informal Reunion of the European Ministers responsible for Urban Development in the EU Member States. Apart from the crucially important acting strategies, in it we also encounter one that refers to stigmatized communities: Granting special attention to underprivileged areas within the city as a whole. Decisive on this line, it is specified that the “politics of social integration which contributes to the reduction of inequalities and prevention of social exclusion will be the best warranty for maintaining the safety of our cities”. Thus, rough neighbourhoods are mentioned in all of the European Union’s programmatic documents. In our study, we have focused our attention on one such underprivileged area, the Mimiu neighbourhood (ghetto) in Ploiesti, where time seems to have stood still for decades, during which time the people here have struggled to make a living.