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The City of Zaragoza is one of Spain’s oldest and most populous urban areas. It is scenically located on the Ebro River, in the autonomous community of Aragon in northeastern Spain, about 200 miles from both Madrid and Barcelona. In 2003, the state constructed a new inter-modal regional transportation station in Zaragoza’s Las Delicias sector. The new station provides a modern terminal for the new high-speed commuter rail line connecting Zaragoza to Madrid and Barcelona. The Delicias station replaced the former “El Portillo” rail station, freeing up 23 acres of prime real estate in the heart of the city.

In 2008, Zaragoza hosted the global International Exposition and, in preparation, city officials executed several urban improvement projects. City officials have teamed up with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to redesign 330 acres of urban land in the Las Delicias and El Portillo districts. The resulting Digital Mile, promoted as “an urban space of creativity and innovation,” uses communication technology to add value to public space and is intended to raise the city’s global, high-tech, entrepreneurial profile during Expo 2008. Not only are there demographic parallels between Oakland and Zaragoza, the aim, scale, and shape of the Digital Mile is quite similar to that of the neighborhood of Oakland.

The general design concept of the Digital Mile is to link physical and digital frameworks into a network of facilities and public spaces that can be used for multiple community and educational purposes. Th e physical elements are organized along a pathway -- called the Paseo del Agua -- consisting of three major event places: the El Portillo node, one of the city’s most historic and culturally significant areas and location of the Museo de la Milla; the Almozara neighborhood, a highly visible area connected to Las Delicias by way of a pedestrian bridge; and the Ebro Rivergate, the main entrance to the Expo 2008 grounds and gateway of Zaragoza’s high-tech business sector and recreational amenities.

The project’s digital elements include extensive digital infrastructure. Users can manipulate new intelligent street and building light networks, along with digital menus and maps, according to their needs and whims. The Digital Mile features ambient technology amenities, including a ubiquitous free wireless network and location-based services accessible to subscribers.

The project also features digital public places and amenities which engage users and create dynamic public places. The Adaptable Bus Stop is an interactive feature that digitally provides information and maps by touch or mobile phone according to the users wishes while simultaneously serving as a wireless hotspot. The Smart Parking program allows drivers to digitally assess local parking availability. Digital awnings, which are essentially movable fabric screens mounted on the buildings adjacent to the digital plaza and promenade in El Portillo, respond to climate and people’s movements.

The Department of Science and Technology of Zaragoza City Council, the City of Zaragoza, and MIT spearheaded the project. The MIT project team included the university’s Department of Urban Studies and Planning, the Department of Architecture, the Media Lab, and the Center for Real Estate. Additional partners included an inner-city redevelopment agency, the state government, the University of Zaragoza, and the Zaragoza “Ciudad del Conocimiento” Foundation. A Committee of Experts of Zaragoza City Council, which included Manuel Castells, Saskia Sassen, and William Mitchell, also participated.