The Dynamics of Brownfield Redevelopment

Abstract

Negligence of former industrial sites (-brownfields‖) has adversely impacted urban landscapes throughout the industrialized world. Brownfield redevelopment has recently emerged as a sustainable land use strategy and impetus for urban revitalization. This study presents a system dynamics model of the redevelopment process that illustrates how delays compound before realizing financial benefits from investment in these core urban areas. We construct a dynamic hypothesis, in which brownfield redevelopment activities are dependent upon funding and in turn bolster tax base through job creation. Drawing on previous studies, barriers to brownfield redevelopment are explored, including fear of liability, regulatory concerns, and uncertain cleanup standards and funding mechanisms. We model a case study of redevelopment in the State of Michigan (USA), which is informed by data from the Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and U.S. Conference of Mayors brownfield surveys. Stock-flow structures represent phases of redevelopment, with diverted streams for sites in which no contamination was found (false alarms) and those with excess contamination level. The model is used to examine the point at which cumulative tax revenues from redeveloped areas exceed cumulative expenditures on brownfield redevelopment under different levels of funding availability. OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2011, 3 915

The Contribution of Economic Science to Brownfield Redevelopment: A Review

“…The risks of future liability, stigma, and uncertainty on remediation costs, all linked to the remaining contamination, have to be taken into account (Bartke ). These difficulties, in addition to frequent discrepancy between public and private interests, often represent important obstacles to BFR (Coffin and Shepherd ; Bartsch ; Whitney ; Paull ; BenDor et al ; Spiess and De Sousa ).…”

“…The risks of future liability, stigma, and uncertainty on remediation costs, all linked to the remaining contamination, have to be taken into account (Bartke 2011). These difficulties, in addition to frequent discrepancy between public and private interests, often represent important obstacles to BFR (Coffin and Shepherd 1998;Bartsch 2003;Whitney 2003;Paull 2008;BenDor et al 2011;Spiess and De Sousa 2016). This paper reviews how economic science and its underlying concepts and methodologies can help overcome some of these obstacles and facilitate BFR management.…”

Optimising value from the soft re-use of brownfield sites

“… The presence of green infrastructure has been linked to significant positive effects on surrounding property values and capacity to raise local taxation (Greenspace Alliance 2010). Part of the financial equation for public sector funders may be improved taxation through brownfield restoration benefits to the local economy, such as job creation or increased tax take from increased land values (BenDor et al 2011).…”

Economic efficiency of brownfield regeneration: study of South Moravian projects

“…Problems with balancing fi nances usually result in the stagnation of the project (Nijkamp, Rodenburg and Wagtendonk, 2002), therefore preventive measures should be implemented in order to prevent this unfavourable situation. A model examining a break-even point of cumulative tax revenues from redeveloped areas and expenditures of BR under different levels of funding availability was used by BenDor, Metcalf and Paich (2011).…”