from the traditional city to the innovative city

This article presented a study of the transformation of the concept of the traditional city to the modern one – innovative and creative – characterized by the different profiles that define any innovative city: the wager on behalf of the value of knowledge, good management,creativity, technological development, and the capacity for change. In addition, as an example of an effective changing process, the article describes, synthetically, the most significant characteristics of the modernization and decentralization of the municipality of Rosario (Argentina). These include the process of modernization of municipal administrative structures and management mechanisms whose aim is to develop an efficient and effective instrument to carry out public policies that bring about change; pay more attention to the citizens; simplify and make more transparent the actions of the municipality; secure a more equitable distribution of resources; reduce social inequalities; facilitate access to health and culture; and, at bottom, make Rosario a more competitive city.