The regeneration of urban waterfronts: comparative analysis of European case studies

Abstract

Waterfronts are key for implementing sustainable development strategies, especially considering their experienced demographic, urban, and economic growth and the inherent risks they face, notably due to climate change. Simultaneously, they are gaining prominence due to global shifts in urban planning and increased environmental awareness. This shift has led to a re-evaluation of the role of waterfronts prompting the relocation of existing industries, ports and linear infrastructure. This has aroused interests of different urban planning-related actors, both in the public and private sectors.

Growing interests in these territories, together with the increasing concerns for the urban regeneration of degraded areas, notably pushed a series  of waterfront redevelopment projects worldwide. Some of the most recent examples can be found in central and northern Europe. Among them, cases in the cities of Amsterdam, Bordeaux, Copenhagen, and Malmo deserve special attention given their proven success.

These European cities have been at the center of emblematic urban planning and management projects, particularly in the regeneration of important part of their urban waterfront industrial and/or port areas, or areas of undefined land use, were converted  into residential areas combined with activities in the tertiary and leisure sectors and with significant investments in new mobility and transport systems that have international recognition, including in terms of sustainability.

With that in mind, this research aims to analyze four European cases of waterfront urban regeneration projects located in the cities mentioned above. The analysis intends to identify these projects’ critical success factors and compare options/practices, which can prove helpful to other similar applications. Specifically, this case studies analysis is framed within the project “CidadeTejo” (transl. “TagusCity”), which aims to learn from these successful interventions to propose an integrated vision for the territories of the 11 municipalities surrounding the Tagus Estuary, in which similar waterfront redevelopment projects are being planned.

To this end, two methodological steps were carried out. The first consisted of a literature review of each case study to systematize information on certain topics in a standardized form. Six topics of analysis were considered: general aspects of the urban intervention, including main purposes, initiative owners and main actors, time of execution, degree of completion, and financing model; considerations on the concept of waterfront, including territorial scope and physical dimension; information on programmatic content, and results; type of urban operation and relevant planning instruments; information on different thematic areas, such as environment, accessibility and transport, land use planning and urbanism, social aspects, and governance; and the coherency of the intervention with existing spatial planning instruments. 

To further enhance knowledge on the case studies, the second methodological step consisted of semi-structured interviews with experts on each project, who have been involved in the project in different stages. Questions were related with intervention triggers, main project actors, land ownership, financing models, main achievements and pitfalls, among others. It was also discussed what were the main challenges faced by the project's coordinating team and what aspects should be taken into consideration and rectified in future operations.

The conducted analyses highlight the unique features of each project. It is interesting to note the different motivations for developing the projects, their urban proposals, and the uses contemplated. Also noteworthy are the different forms of governance used to realize these projects and the different types of funding observed. Finally, despite being considered success cases, the notion of sustainability is interpreted in these case studies in different ways - with different preponderances of the environmental, mobility and financial sustainability dimensions of the intervention.