“Paseo La Corriente” is a conceptual urban design project that seeks to recover and enhance a historic space located in the center of San Luis Potosí, adjacent to the UNESCO buffer zone. The project is specifically situated along the former course of the La Corriente stream, a natural waterway that shaped the city’s layout from the 16th century onward and played a key role in its economic and territorial development.
After its channeling in 1933, the stream disappeared from the urban landscape, leaving behind a deteriorated and underutilized residual space, despite its strategic role as a pedestrian link between the historic center and the western part of the city. The project proposes transforming this space into an accessible, inclusive, and socially active public promenade that recovers historical memory and strengthens urban identity.
The proposal is guided by the principle of “Design for All,” integrating accessibility, pedestrian mobility, and urban safety as fundamental design criteria. Methodologies are applied to eliminate physical barriers, improve communication, orientation, and spatial movement, ensuring usable and accessible plazas for all users. Following these criteria, systems are implemented connecting pedestrian crossings, access to squares, rest areas and sensory elements, improving the orientation, autonomy and safety of people.
The design incorporates a multisensory strategy as a tool for inclusion and site recognition. It includes artificial streams that reinterpret the historic watercourse and guide visitors through sound, aromatic plant species that create a distinctive scent for each plaza, and haptic maps with Braille, QR codes, and NFC technology. These elements enrich the urban experience and enhance spatial legibility.
“Paseo La Corriente” project is conceived as a successful, replicable practice, demonstrating that contemporary urban design solutions can be inclusive and sustainable without necessarily losing their historical essence, contributing to the development of more equitable, accessible and resilient cities.