IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/lauspo/v144y2024ics0264837724002175.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Making room for affordable housing: Project-based negotiations between planning authorities and landowners in Dutch and Swiss densification

Author

Listed:
  • Bouwmeester, Josje
  • Hartmann, Thomas
  • Ay, Deniz
  • Gerber, Jean-David

Abstract

The emerging objective to combat urban sprawl has put densification on the political agenda. Simultaneously, the complexity of planning within the existing built environment means that planning increasingly occurs on the project level. Project-based negotiations between planning authorities and landowners, in which agreements between parties are formalized in negotiated land use plans or private law contracts, thus shape the outcomes of densification projects. Considering the potential adverse effects of densification on housing affordability, it is important to understand how this shift towards project-based negotiations affects the ability of planners to secure public benefits such as affordable housing in redevelopment projects. This study uses a neo-institutional framework to analyze the negotiations between landowners and planning authorities and illuminates under which conditions affordable housing is provided. Case studies of six projects in two larger-scale redevelopment areas in the cities of Bern (Switzerland) and Nieuwegein (Netherlands) show this ability is highly dependent on (1) the existence of binding affordable housing targets, (2) landownership by non-profit actors, and (3) the direct involvement of citizens. The cases show a distinction between different types of project negotiations. In the Netherlands, contract-based negotiations can lead to the dilution of affordability targets, while in Switzerland, these targets are implemented more consistently through negotiated land use plans. The findings indicate that a project-based approach to planning may speed up the implementation of densification objectives but comes at the cost of democratic accountability. Instead, to ensure the social sustainability of urban densification projects, the scope of negotiations between planners and developers needs to move beyond cost-benefit considerations to include a broader range of public interests.

Suggested Citation

  • Bouwmeester, Josje & Hartmann, Thomas & Ay, Deniz & Gerber, Jean-David, 2024. "Making room for affordable housing: Project-based negotiations between planning authorities and landowners in Dutch and Swiss densification," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:144:y:2024:i:c:s0264837724002175
    DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107264
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837724002175
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107264?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Franziska B. Schmid & Felix Kienast & Anna M. Hersperger, 2021. "The compliance of land-use planning with strategic spatial planning – insights from Zurich, Switzerland," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(7), pages 1231-1250, July.
    2. Eric Charmes & Roger Keil, 2015. "The Politics of Post-Suburban Densification in Canada and France," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(3), pages 581-602, May.
    3. Mi Shih & Leslie Shieh, 2020. "Negotiating Density and Financing Public Goods in Vancouver and New Taipei City: A Development Rights Perspective," Planning Practice & Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(4), pages 380-395, July.
    4. Jonkman, Arend & Meijer, Rick & Hartmann, Thomas, 2022. "Land for housing: Quantitative targets and qualitative ambitions in Dutch housing development," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    5. Bouwmeester, Josje & Gerber, Jean-David & Hartmann, Thomas & Ay, Deniz, 2023. "Non-compliance and non-enforcement: An unexpected outcome of flexible soft densification policy in the Netherlands," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    6. Idt, Joel & Pellegrino, Margot, 2021. "From the ostensible objectives of public policies to the reality of changes: Local orders of densification in the urban regions of Paris and Rome," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    7. Martijn van den Hurk & Tuna Tasan-Kok, 2020. "Contractual arrangements and entrepreneurial governance: Flexibility and leeway in urban regeneration projects," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(16), pages 3217-3235, December.
    8. Tuna Tasan-Kok & Martijn van den Hurk & Sara Özogul & Sofia Bittencourt, 2019. "Changing public accountability mechanisms in the governance of Dutch urban regeneration," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(6), pages 1107-1128, June.
    9. Tuna TaÅŸan-Kok & Rob Atkinson & Maria Lucia Refinetti Martins, 2021. "Hybrid contractual landscapes of governance: Generation of fragmented regimes of public accountability through urban regeneration," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 39(2), pages 371-392, March.
    10. Jessica Ferm & Mike Raco, 2020. "Viability Planning, Value Capture and the Geographies of Market-Led Planning Reform in England," Planning Theory & Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(2), pages 218-235, June.
    11. Jean-David Gerber, 2016. "The managerial turn and municipal land-use planning in Switzerland – evidence from practice," Planning Theory & Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(2), pages 192-209, April.
    12. Pete Wyatt, 2017. "Experiences of running negotiable and non-negotiable developer contributions side-by-side," Planning Practice & Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(2), pages 152-170, March.
    13. Thierry Theurillat & Nelson Vera-Büchel & Olivier Crevoisier, 2016. "Commentary: From capital landing to urban anchoring: The negotiated city," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 53(7), pages 1509-1518, May.
    14. Cavicchia, Rebecca, 2023. "Housing accessibility in densifying cities: Entangled housing and land use policy limitations and insights from Oslo," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    15. Judith Westerink & Dagmar Haase & Annette Bauer & Joe Ravetz & Françoise Jarrige & Carmen B.E. M. Aalbers, 2013. "Dealing with Sustainability Trade-Offs of the Compact City in Peri-Urban Planning Across European City Regions," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(4), pages 473-497, April.
    16. Gerber, Jean-David & Debrunner, Gabriela, 2022. "Planning with power. Implementing urban densification policies in Zurich, Switzerland," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    17. Gerber, Jean-David & Knoepfel, Peter & Nahrath, Stéphane & Varone, Frédéric, 2009. "Institutional Resource Regimes: Towards sustainability through the combination of property-rights theory and policy analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 798-809, January.
    18. Jessica Verheij & Deniz Ay & Jean-David Gerber & Stéphane Nahrath, 2023. "Ensuring Public Access to Green Spaces in Urban Densification: The Role of Planning and Property Rights," Planning Theory & Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(3), pages 342-365, May.
    19. Ivo Balmer & Jean-David Gerber, 2018. "Why are housing cooperatives successful? Insights from Swiss affordable housing policy," Housing Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 33(3), pages 361-385, April.
    20. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein & Philippe Koch & Daniela Sanjines & Carla Assandri & Cecilia Matonte & Daniela Osorio & Gerardo Sarachu, 2022. "Struggles for the decommodification of housing: the politics of housing cooperatives in Uruguay and Switzerland," Housing Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(6), pages 955-974, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Puustinen, Tuulia & Krigsholm, Pauliina & Falkenbach, Heidi, 2022. "Land policy conflict profiles for different densification types: A literature-based approach," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    2. Vera Götze & Mathias Jehling, 2023. "Comparing types and patterns: A context-oriented approach to densification in Switzerland and the Netherlands," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 50(6), pages 1645-1659, July.
    3. Nachmany, Harel & Hananel, Ravit, 2023. "The Urban Renewal Matrix," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    4. Debrunner, Gabriela & Hartmann, Thomas, 2020. "Strategic use of land policy instruments for affordable housing – Coping with social challenges under scarce land conditions in Swiss cities," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    5. Alexander Lord & Chi-Wan Cheang & Richard Dunning, 2022. "Understanding the geography of affordable housing provided through land value capture: Evidence from England," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 59(6), pages 1219-1237, May.
    6. Wilhelmus (Michiel) Stapper, Everardus, 2021. "Contracting with citizens: How residents in Hamburg and New York negotiated development agreements," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    7. Raco, Mike & Ward, Callum & Brill, Frances & Sanderson, Danielle & Freire-Trigo, Sonia & Ferm, Jess & Hamiduddin, Iqbal & Livingstone, Nicola, 2022. "Towards a virtual statecraft: housing targets and the governance of urban housing markets," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114315, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    8. Peter Bibby & John Henneberry & Jean-Marie Halleux, 2021. "Incremental residential densification and urban spatial justice: The case of England between 2001 and 2011," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 58(10), pages 2117-2138, August.
    9. Karim I. Abdrabo & Heba Hamed & Kareem A. Fouad & Mohamed Shehata & Sameh A. Kantoush & Tetsuya Sumi & Bahaa Elboshy & Taher Osman, 2021. "A Methodological Approach towards Sustainable Urban Densification for Urban Sprawl Control at the Microscale: Case Study of Tanta, Egypt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-20, May.
    10. Papamichail, Theodora & Perić, Ana, 2023. "Action-oriented planning methods as a tool for improving regional governance in Switzerland: Evidence from the Sisslerfeld area," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    11. Kristin Kjærås, 2024. "The politics of urban densification in Oslo," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(1), pages 40-57, January.
    12. Vera Götze & Josje Anna Bouwmeester & Mathias Jehling, 2024. "For whom do we densify? Explaining income variation across densification projects in the region of Utrecht, the Netherlands," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(7), pages 1273-1290, May.
    13. David Aubin & Frédéric Varone, 2013. "Getting Access to Water: Property Rights or Public Policy Strategies?," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 31(1), pages 154-167, February.
    14. Shuangqing Sheng & Wei Song & Hua Lian & Lei Ning, 2022. "Review of Urban Land Management Based on Bibliometrics," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-25, November.
    15. Cavicchia, Rebecca, 2023. "Housing accessibility in densifying cities: Entangled housing and land use policy limitations and insights from Oslo," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    16. Meng Wang & Aleksandra Krstikj & Huan Liu, 2022. "Planning Compact City in Rapidly Growing Cities—An Estimation of the Effects of New-Type Urbanization Planning in Hangzhou City," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-16, October.
    17. Beatrice Maria Bellè & Alessandro Deserti, 2024. "Urban Greening Plans: A Potential Device towards a Sustainable and Co-Produced Future," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-13, June.
    18. Julia Heslop & Josh Chambers & James Maloney & George Spurgeon & Hannah Swainston & Hannah Woodall, 2023. "Re-contextualising purpose-built student accommodation in secondary cities: The role of planning policy, consultation and economic need during austerity," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 60(5), pages 923-940, April.
    19. Jean-David Gerber, St phane Nahrath, 2013. "Beitrag zur Entwicklung eines Ressourcenansatzes der Nachhaltigkeit," Diskussionsschriften credresearchpaper03, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft - CRED.
    20. Calvo-Mendieta, Iratxe & Petit, Olivier & Vivien, Franck-Dominique, 2017. "Common Patrimony: A Concept to Analyze Collective Natural Resource Management. The Case of Water Management in France," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 126-132.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:144:y:2024:i:c:s0264837724002175. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joice Jiang (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/land-use-policy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.