Roelof Verhage

The Effects of Land Policy: Quantity as well as Quality is Important

Most studies of land policy, in the abstract and when applied to a country and to comparisons between countries, use a theoretical framework which is derived, ultimately, from Ricardos land price theory. This is used to predict the effects and the incidence of the costs and benefits which result from applying land policy instruments. This article begins by comparing land policy in Israel and the Netherlands in that way. Both countries have a highly sophisticated and integrated set of land policy instruments. However, some very important differences between the effects of applying those instruments in the two countries cannot be explained within that framework. In particular, in the Netherlands, the development value of land is low and development gains small-in stark contrast with Israel. A supplementary framework is needed, and this is given by the stock adjustment model applied to housing. With this, the difference between the two countries can be explained as being the result of differences in the way the instruments are applied to influence the amount of housing supplied. The Ricardian theory and the stock adjustment model can be combined into one framework that relates land policy to housing production. The key variable in this relationship is the type of land development process that dominates in a country. Whether this process is carried out by a private or a public body can affect the volume of production, and hence the price, of housing. This adds a new element to the discussion about the relationships between planning, land supply and house prices.

Local policy for housing development: European experiences

Part 1 Local policy for housing development and the residential environment: introduction local policy and housing develoment the research project a micro-economic and an institutional perspective influencing the residential environment putting the pieces together. Part 2 Cross-national comparison of housing development processes: an approach to policy analysis a framework for a cross-national comparison about the research design case study files - chronological overview. Part 3 The incidence of costs and revenues: the residual theory of land prices case study files - financial analysis the cost side the income side expenditure o the residential environment. Part 4 Actors and activities, roles and relations: an institutional analysis of the development process case study files - actors, roles and activities unravelling the housing development process power and dependence relations case study files - relations of power interdependence between the actors. Part 5 Decisions about the residential environment: the analysis of decision making case study files - interactions and decisions realizing the residential environment the development process and the residential environment. Part 6 Local policy for housing development - lessons to be learnt: recapitulation the value of analytical framework changing the process to change the outcomes policy options for the Dutch situation where to go from here? Appendix: powers and practices for influencing housing development in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany and France.

The Role of the Public Sector in Urban Development: Lessons from Leidsche Rijn Utrecht (The Netherlands)

This article describes how the local planning authority plays a role both as a regulator and as a facilitator of urban development processes. Using the study of a large-scale housing development process in the Netherlands (Leidsche Rijn Utrecht), it is argued that the regulating and the facilitating roles of the local planning authority, that are now combined in the spatial plans, could be better if separated. This would allow the planning authority to regulate only where necessary, and to facilitate where possible, thus creating more space for collaborative processes. On a practical level, this analysis allows an approach for the public sector to be discerned, represented by the local planning authority, to pursue housing and land use policy by inducing the other actors in the urban development process to co-operate. On a more theoretical level, the article contributes to our understanding of the role and position of the public sector in development projects where public and private interests meet.

Entre conflits et synergies

The transformation of the existing urban fabric in projects of urban renewal is the product of a negotiation process between urban actors with different interests. The choice to renew a particular urban area implies a bipolar reflection on the value of the existing urban fabric and its heritage potential on the one hand, and the actions and measures to transform the urban fabric on the other. At first view, processes of preservation and of renewal are diametrically opposed, which leads to the question whether the existing urban fabric should be preserved and valorized in order to transmit architectural and urban design heritage, or whether it should be erased for the construction of a modern urban fabric. This paper points out the connections between the issues of urban renewal and preservation by analyzing these processes in three types of urban fabrics in the main conurbations of France (i.e., the historical city centre, peri-central spaces, and large-scale social housing estates). Three types of repres...