Ronald van Kempen

Social effects of urban restructuring: a case study in Amsterdam and Utrecht, the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, urban restructuring has been a major policy since 1997. Its principal aim is to improve neighbourhoods by demolishing or upgrading low-rent social dwellings and building more expensive rental or owner occupied units. A fundamental idea underlying this policy is to break up the physical and social monotony of urban areas and to achieve a mixed population in terms of income. The consequence of this new mix should be that people interact better and fully enjoy all kinds of facilities in the restructured area. This paper addresses the question of whether this new policy has indeed had these effects. The focus point is the role of the neighbourhood, featuring changes for traditional inhabitants while accommodating the newcomers. Do they use the area? Are their social contacts made there? Or can the restructured area be seen as a dormitory, where the residents have no contact with other people in the immediate environment? The paper is based on a fieldwork study undertaken in the cities of Amsterdam and Utrecht. Lessons for future policies of urban restructuring are formulated.In the Netherlands, urban restructuring has been a major policy since 1997. Its principal aim is to improve neighbourhoods by demolishing or upgrading low-rent social dwellings and building more expensive rental or owner occupied units. A fundamental idea underlying this policy is to break up the physical and social monotony of urban areas and to achieve a mixed population in terms of income. The consequence of this new mix should be that people interact better and fully enjoy all kinds of facilities in the restructured area. This paper addresses the question of whether this new policy has indeed had these effects. The focus point is the role of the neighbourhood, featuring changes for traditional inhabitants while accommodating the newcomers. Do they use the area? Are their social contacts made there? Or can the restructured area be seen as a dormitory, where the residents have no contact with other people in the immediate environment? The paper is based on a fieldwork study undertaken in the cities of A...

Revolution in Social Housing in the Netherlands: Possible Effects of New Housing Policies

The social rented sector in the Netherlands has always had a very special status. Unlike many other countries, in the Netherlands this sector has never been regarded as a segment exclusively for low-income households. Consequently, neighbourhoods with large numbers of social rented dwellings have never been areas for low-income households only. Since about 1990, however, the proportion of low-income households in social rented housing has increased, while high-income households can be found more and more in the owner-occupied sector. At least for the 1990s, housing policies can be seen as partially responsible for this change. In this contribution, we argue that new housing policies in the Netherlands will probably have the effect of increasing the share of low-income households in social housing even more. This holds for the policy of urban restructuring, initiated in 1997, as well as for the newest plans of the State Secretary of Housing that were launched in his Housing Memorandum at the end of the year 2000. If the proposed housing policy is implemented in the near future, we doubt whether the status of social housing in the Netherlands will continue to be so different from that of other EU countries.

New trends in urban policies in Europe: evidence from the Netherlands and Denmark

Abstract Current social dynamics have aggravated social inequalities in most European countries during the last two decades. The changes have accelerated differences in living conditions between groups in the cities and between neighbourhoods within cities. Along with increasing social polarization, there are clear signs of a spatial dimension to this process. The past gives clear indications that universal programmes and urban polices of regeneration have been unable to cope with the problem of polarization. Cities and national governments seem to be aware of this, as they have developed new ways of organizing urban policy. There are many similarities in the changes of urban policy from country to country, although no coordinating authority has influenced this. First, the new urban policy is organized differently: it now involves partners other than public authorities, often including (parts of) the population of the areas in question. There seems to be a shift from government to governance. The greater openness to the public is of decisive importance. Second, citizens have been invited into the process of urban improvements; empowerment labels attempt to generate social capital in marginalized neighbourhoods. Third, the new urban policy is being targeted to bounded areas. Fourth, a move from sectoral to more integrative policies can be discerned. And finally, at least in some countries, policies are taking the form of contracts or covenants. All of the above changes are made in order to maximize the efficiency of public policy. This paper discusses these now widely used aspects of urban policy. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the effort to broaden the sphere of stakeholders? What are the benefits of a shift from a universalist to targeted strategies and of a shift from sectoral to more integrative policies? What are the problems and consequences of the increasing use of governance?

Housing Careers of Minority Ethnic Groups: Experiences, Explanations and Prospects

The housing careers of minority ethnic groups is an under-researched topic. Filling this knowledge gap is important for several reasons. Increased knowledge within this field may help explain the disadvantaged position of minority ethnic groups in housing markets in cities on different continents. Policy strategies can be formulated when it is known whether minority ethnic groups have specific preferences or suffer from specific barriers in the housing market. In this introduction to this special issue on the housing careers of minority ethnic groups, attention is paid to the concept of housing career and the definition of minority ethnic groups in different countries. The focus of the main part of the paper is the identification of factors affecting the course of housing careers in general and those of minority ethnic groups in particular.

Ethnic Residential Patterns in Dutch Cities: Backgrounds, Shifts and Consequences

This article describes recent trends in the residential patterns of ethnic minorities, specifically Turks and Moroccans, in Dutch cities. In order to evaluate the patterns and their dynamics, some general observations about segregation are included. The patterns in the big cities are compared to those observed elsewhere in the country and in other European cities. This brief comparison is followed by a discussion of how the observed spatial patterns affect the social life of the groups in question. The article concludes with a list of factors that are likely to influence the evolution of ethnic residential patterns in the Netherlands in the near future. There seem to be ever fewer reasons to believe that the trend towards increasing segregation in Dutch cities can be reversed.This article describes recent trends in the residential patterns of ethnic minorities, specifically Turks and Moroccans, in Dutch cities. In order to evaluate the patterns and their dynamics, some general observations about segregation are included. The patterns in the big cities are compared to those observed elsewhere in the country and in other European cities. This brief comparison is followed by a discussion of how the observed spatial patterns affect the social life of the groups in question. The article concludes with a list of factors that are likely to influence the evolution of ethnic residential patterns in the Netherlands in the near future. There seem to be ever fewer reasons to believe that the trend towards increasing segregation in Dutch cities can be reversed.

On the social significance of spatial location; Spatial segregation and social inclusion

This article gives an overview of the positive and negative aspects of spatial concentration and segregation. We argue that much of the literature is biased; it emphasizes the drawbacks of spatial concentration and segregation of low-income groups in general and immigrants in particular. The opportunities offered by concentration and segregation, which almost always depend on the presence of local solidarity networks, are given less attention. These opportunities are mainly treated in the literature on ethnic entrepreneurs. Much of the literature on the effects of spatial concentration and segregation is based on research in the United States. Thus, we have to be very careful when we apply the results to West European countries. The overview concludes with some suggestions for further research.

Moving Up or Moving Down? Housing Careers of Turks and Moroccans in Utrecht, the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, the housing conditions of most ethnic minorities are still inferior to those of the native Dutch. The focus of the paper is the housing careers of Turks and Moroccans in the city of Utrecht. Despite some improvements and certain exceptions, they still find themselves in housing conditions inferior to those of the native Dutch. A career approach is necessary to explain these less favourable housing conditions because the present situation cannot be seen separately from decisions taken earlier. Some of these decisions are taken in the field of housing, but it is argued here that decisions taken on the labour market and with respect to the household itself are of major importance. It is also argued that the ethnic cultural approach, which stresses the housing preferences of minority ethnic groups, does not adequately explain the housing conditions and housing careers of the Turks and Moroccans in the Netherlands.

Undivided Cities in the Netherlands: Present Situation and Political Rhetoric

In various countries we observe governments aiming to produce mixed income areas to reduce or prevent spatial segregation. This almost always implies a redifferentiation, or restructuring of the housing stock of low-income areas. This strategy has its advantages and disadvantages. Redifferentiation and restructuring are based on the idea that solutions to the problems of spatial segregation and concentration can be found in the housing stock. This is also the case in the Netherlands. Since 1997, the Dutch Government has advocated a housing policy promoting a restructuring of urban neighbourhoods by building more expensive dwellings in traditionally low-income areas in order to influence the income mix in these neighbourhoods, thereby implying that this is a positive and feasible development. This paper will focus on the goals of the undivided cities formulated by the Dutch Government and the arguments concerning the relation between segregation and restructuring of the urban housing stock. The paper will ...

Enclave Urbanism In China: Consequences and Interpretations

Following reforms enacted since the late 1970s, domestic and foreign investments are resulting in a dramatic transformation of Chinas landscape. The concentrated Maoist city with its cellular multifunctional work-unit structure is disappearing. In its place, cities now emerge as patchworks of mono-functional and mono-cultural enclaves, often demarcated by walls and gates. Based on experiences elsewhere, urban theorists criticize such segregated and gated developments because they threaten social integration and social justice. Focusing on residential enclaves, this introductory article considers the relevance of this criticism for urban China. It is argued that residential enclaves might indeed produce substantial negative effects. However, the materialization of these effects depends on local spatial and social realities. Thus an adequate interpretation of Chinese enclave urbanism necessitates the answering of a number of empirical questions. Among the most prominent are: Does the private provision of services in China lead to or exacerbate exclusion? Do residential enclaves limit contacts among groups? And how do various social groups perceive walls and gates in urban China?

Escaping poverty neighbourhoods in the Netherlands

While patterns of spatial segregation and concentration of ethnic minority groups in European cities have been well documented, more dynamic data on migration have been rare until now. In particular, little is known about the potential for different kinds of households to escape from poverty areas. Escaping these areas can be important in order to escape unwanted housing and living conditions. The analyses in this paper show that in the Netherlands the chance to escape such poverty neighbourhoods partly depends on ethnic descent: some immigrant groups are less able to escape than are Dutch households.