Changing Contexts in Urban Regeneration

Urban renewal plans need to respond to new conditions and requirements, caused by changes in the population and in social structure.

Changing Contexts in Urban Regeneration presents a comprehensive overview of relevant theory, including the socio-spatial characteristics of neighbourhoods and cities; the place of individuals and households in the economic system; and the design form of the housing stock in relation to its usability, valuation, and adaptability.

Next, it evaluates the urban renewal plans that the city of Rotterdam launched in the seventies, drawing international attention at the time, leading to changes in the structures of housing provision, as well as the economic and social context.

This book connects academic debate with professional practice and makes its case by evaluating a major urban renewal plan that has been tested for more than thirty years. It shows that urban renewal should take an integrated approach to the physical, environmental, social and economic programmes, based on fundamental solutions that stand the test of time.