He December 14, 1821, Bernardino Rivadaviathen Minister of Government and Foreign Affairs of Buenos Aires during the mandate of Martin Rodriguezsigned the decree titled “Buildings and streets of cities and towns”. This document established that all the corners of the buildings in Buenos Aires must have what is today recognized as “ochava”.
The “ochava”, also known as “chamfer” in Spain, It consists of an oblique cut in the buildings that are at the corners of each block. The reason was to facilitate circulation and visibility for passersby and, above all, reduce surprise thefts that were common at that time. The measure was intended to prevent people from colliding on corners.especially with street vendors who at that time used to use a pole on which they hung their products.
At that time, Buenos Aires had no differences between districts. The regulations were applied in the city of Buenos Aires and were extended to the rest of the cities and provinces.. However, it is still possible to find several corners in Buenos Aires without an ochava. Some of these cases are constructions prior to the Rivadavia decree and that managed to survive modernity.
A large part of the buildings that resisted this change are due to demolitions, street openings and widening that made them exempt from the ochava requirement. As for Buenos Aires, It is estimated that there are more than 20 corners without an octave that still manage to resist the modernization of the Rivadavia era.
Agustín Avenaliwhich is defined as Flaneur (as an urban walker) and journalist, in 2020 he made a thread on x about the origin of this design in the corners. At that time he counted the corners of Buenos Aires that do not have an ochava and He found 29 that continued as in the pre-Rivadavia era.
There are some emblematic points without ochava, among which is for example Elorriaga Heights, in Adolfo Alsina and Defensa. There is the oldest standing two-story house in the Argentine capital. These types of places are witnesses of a bygone era and how the city evolved.
In addition to visibility and safety problems at corners, Another relevant factor in the decision to implement ochavas was the European style, so admired by many leaders of the 19th century. In that context, the diagonal cut in the corners was a practical measure, but it had hidden an aesthetic choice with an eye on emblematic cities such as Paris and Rome.
Beyond being a fashion at that time, It was not something new in Europe. A reform of Romecarried out by the Pope Sixtus Vmanaged to implement large avenues that linked points of interest, and at their intersections Ochavas were placed to facilitate mobility and improve urban aesthetics.
A curious aspect is that some historic buildings, such as the Holy House of Spiritual Exercises, on Avenida Independencia and Salta, do not present ochavas, since they are prior to the Rivadavia decree. In these old buildings, you can see what Buenos Aires was like before the implementation of the “chamfer”.
Today, ochavas are still a prominent feature in the urban planning of Buenos Aires. Although the city has changed a lot since the times of Rivadavia, the idea of having corners with ochava is still valid.. The ochava, currently, improves visibility for drivers on every corner, as well as for passersby. And it was also integrated as an essential part of the Buenos Aires urban landscape.
Is a decision made more than 200 years ago that still influences the structure and security of the city. This legacy of Bernardino Rivadaviabeyond his performance as President, shows how a simple measure can have a lasting and practical impact on people’s daily lives.
