Vida Maliene

Urban regeneration for sustainable communities: A case study

Abstract Over the past few decades, cities have been subjected to severe social and economic pressures, which have had a disproportionate impact on the urban environment. Consequently, this has increased the concentration of the most deprived households in the worst urban neighbourhoods. The UK Governments have attempted to tackle the physical, social and economic consequences of these changes through a variety of mechanisms and policy initiatives with varying degrees of success. The current objective can be interpreted as an attempt to implement regeneration projects or create sustainable communities/places through multi‐agency or partnership programmes. The nature and extent of urban problems are now very well documented; there has been a considerable learning process in the development of different urban regeneration programmes. Over the 20th and the beginning of 21st centuries, the nature of urban regeneration policy has changed direction several times and has applied different focuses. Today, a “sust...

Brownfield Regeneration: Waterfront Site Developments in Liverpool and Cologne

Abstract The regeneration of brownfields has recently gained prominence due to greenfield land restrictions as well as their potential to promote the urban renaissance. On the examples of Kings Waterfront in Liverpool and Rheinauhafen in Cologne the paper aims to evaluate how brownfield regeneration practice compares, given that local, national and European bodies have invested significant amounts of time and expenditure to the revitalisation of sites. The literature review provides a background to the issues which need to be overcome for developments such as Liverpools Kings Waterfront and Colognes Rheinauhafen to become a success. In order to determine the state of current brownfield practice in Liverpool and Cologne, we explore the public opinion and information from specialists in the field. The study shows that, if exploited correctly, brownfield sites can provide a catalyst for economic growth in the inner city areas where they once have been deprived. Finally, studied cities were found to contain...

Facilities management development in Europe

Facilities Management (FM) uses different approaches and has distinctive priorities in very particular country. There are widely divergent interpretations of the FM concept as it is used in various countries. FM is generally understood in the similar way, but it may use different strategies. There is as yet no consistent definition of the scope of FM activities. The study reported here concerns one general question: why are FM definitions different? We investigate how the historical backgrounds of different countries influence the development of FM, and reveal how the individual law system, psychology and business environment affects FM in various countries.

Health, well-being and sustainable housing

Sustainability of the built environment is an increasingly prominent concern in academic and policy discussions in the UK and EU. Initiatives such as the Code for Sustainable Homes in the UK have been developed to aid integration of sustainability principles into housing developments. Primary focus in this field has been largely on environmental sustainability (particularly energy efficiency) with less attention paid to social and economic factors. This article argues that health and well-being issues need greater consideration within current sustainable housing policy and developments. Three key reasons are presented in support of this argument: (i) Creation of greater market demand; public demand for sustainable buildings could be enhanced through greater promotion of the health and well-being benefits of sustainable housing: (ii) Time-scales; given the longevity of buildings, health considerations should be of paramount importance to avoid any possible future adverse effects: (iii) Indirect societal benefits; enhanced health and well-being can lead to wider societal and economic benefits such as lower healthcare costs. The paper then presents some of the seminal findings from health and housing literature review, outlining how these can be used to enhance sustainable housing policy and developments. The paper concludes by presenting the next stages of research.

Housing Stakeholder Preferences for the "Soft" Features of Sustainable and Healthy Housing Design in the UK

It is widely recognised that the quantity and sustainability of new homes in the UK need to increase. However, it is important that sustainable housing is regarded holistically, and not merely in environmental terms, and incorporates elements that enhance the quality of life, health and well-being of its users. This paper focuses on the “soft” features of sustainable housing, that is, the non-technological components of sustainable housing and neighbourhood design that can impact occupants’ health and well-being. Aims of the study are to ascertain the relative level of importance that key housing stakeholders attach to these features and to investigate whether the opinions of housing users and housing providers are aligned with regards to their importance. An online survey was carried out to gauge the level of importance that the key stakeholders, such as housing users, local authorities, housing associations, and developers (n = 235), attach to these features. Results revealed that while suitable indoor space was the feature regarded as most important by all stakeholders, there were also a number of disparities in opinion between housing users and housing providers (and among the different types of providers). This implies a scope for initiatives to achieve a better alignment between housing users and providers.

Dispersion of relative importance values contributes to the ranking uncertainty: sensitivity analysis of Multiple Criteria Decision-Making methods

Multiple Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) methods are widely used in research and industrial applications. These methods rely heavily on expert perceptions and are often sensitive to the assumptions made. The reliability and robustness of MCDM analysis can be further tested and verified by a computer simulation and sensitivity analysis. In order to address this, five different MCDM approaches, including Weighted Sum Model (WSM), Weighted Product Model (WPM), revised Analytic Hierarchy Process (rAHP), Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) and COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS) are explored in the paper. Real data of the case study for assessing housing affordability are used for testing the robustness of alternative ranking and finding the most sensitive criteria to the change of criterion weight. We identify the most critical criteria for any and best ranking alternatives. The paper highlights the significance of sensitivity analysis in assessing the robustness and reliability of MCDM outcomes. Furthermore, randomly generated and model-based data sets are used to establish relationship between the dispersion of relative importance values of alternatives and ranking uncertainty. Our findings demonstrate that the dispersion of relative importance values of alternatives correlate with the Euclidian distances of aggregated values. We conclude that the dispersion of relative importance values contributes directly to the ranking uncertainty and can be used as a measure for identifying critical criteria.

Opportunities and Constraints of Land Management in Local and Regional Development: Integrated Knowledge, Factors and Trade-offs

Pedestrian streets are public areas, where vehicle traffic is completely or partially restricted. In these parts of the city, people can take a walk, shop and ride bikes. Many scientific publications can be found on the social and economic significance of public areas; however, while seeking for the economic city growth and social advancement it is important not to waste natural resources and not to endanger ecological balance. It is noticed that environmental criteria are mentioned only as components of coherence and which have to interact with each other. Still, the pedestrian zones, as public areas intended for people, have to be safe (in the case of motor and non-motor vehicles) and protected from the vehicle emissions and noise. In addition, trees and green zones as well as the overall cleanliness are significant for the maintenance of ecological balance. Therefore, pedestrian zones not only have to meet economic and social needs but also should be a place that would be pleasant to come back to. The object of this article are the main pedestrian zones of Kaunas city. The research was conducted by applying the analysis and synthesis research methods.

FACTORS INFLUENCING CITIES PEDESTRIAN STREET FUNCTIONALITY AND SUSTAINABLE LAND USE

The public space encourages social exchange, develops and maintains social groups and allows the exchange of public messages. When the public space and public life are not supported in the community, there is no one to communicate with, people become isolated, less inclined to help or support each other. Public space is the scene of public life that promotes a sense of community, sense of place, human connection and communication as well as dependence sensation. High-quality and well-managed public space is a benefit to the citys economy, creating shelter from the car-centred life and move to a more natural environment as well as significant urban land use. Therefore, in recent times, in order to establish the right conditions in cities for different human needs, great attention is paid not only to the development of physical infrastructure, but also to other aspects that will help to create sustainable balance of social, economic and environmental aspects. One of the quality of life in the city return ways is the release of urban spaces for pedestrians. Until these days the pedestrian zones are extended little by little, resulting in disposal of the car parking-lots and improved cycling and other transport facilities. Sustainable use of urban pedestrian zones would provide economic, social, environmental and cultural benefits only if these aspects are combined with each other. The aim of the article is to distinguish and critically analyse (on the basis of a literature review) factors influencing the functionality and sustainable development of pedestrian streets. Article object – cities pedestrian street. The study was conducted using scientific publishing content analysis and synthesis techniques. This article is an overview. Keywords: city, functionality and sustainability, pedestrian street. Article DOI: http://doi.org/10.15544/RD.2015.052

Land Management : Potential, Problems and Stumbling Blocks

During the last decades planning systems in Europe have been changing towards more openness and extended possibilities for market players to take responsibilites in planning – market oriented planning. This paper discusses private actors’ rights to initiate statutory plans for property development. This is done in the light of the planning and building legislations in Norway and Sweden. Although the two countries have a lot in common, and have influenced each other in many ways, the right to initiate development plans has been treated differently. In Norway this right has been an integral part of the planning and building legislations since 1924, and the right as such has never been disputed. In Sweden the right for market players to initiate development plans is a recent invention, 2011, and is substantially more restricted compared to the Norwegian legislation. In planning theories external players’ rights to initiate and prepare plans for development projects is regarded a key-indicator of market intrusion in spatial planning. However, to what degree the planning systems in Norway and Sweden open up for market forces in practice can be discussed – the outset of the formal planning and permit system is one thing; the way matters work in practice may be very different (Cullingworth and Nadin 2006). In both systems, municipal governments are still in a strong position for formulating visions, setting agendas for overall development and projects, and allocate resources for the implementation of plans.