City districts function better and are more highly valued according as local residents possess more social capital. Social capital is makeable to a certain extent. This is because restructuring has a positive influence on the preconditions for developing social capital. It translates into a good social climate in the district. Moreover, most residents make a step forward in their residential career, partly because the district gets a better reputation.

In contrast with the prevailing view that re-housing as a result of restructuring has a negative effect on the social networks of the people involved, this study concluded that this applies only to a limited number of specific cases. Residents do not like being forced to move, but this feeling has hardly anything to do with the loss of contacts with other residents. A more important factor is the loss of a familiar environment. Nevertheless, many people who are obliged to move out make advances in their residential career.

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City districts function better and are more highly valued according as local residents possess greater social capital. In the literature, residential duration is often considered one of the decisive factors for the social capital of residents. Additionally, it is generally assumed that the construction of new owner-occupied homes or the sale of rented homes leads to less churn in a district. This study tested these hypotheses.

The study concluded that residential duration determines social capital only to a small extent. The assumption that on average people who stay and people who move on within the district have greater social capital than newcomers and movers coming in from surrounding districts was found to be untrue. Newcomers more frequently rank among the middle and higher income groups than movers within the district or from surrounding districts. They choose the district on positive grounds. This often is expressed in an active commitment to the district. Additionally, the degree of owner-occupied housing is highest among newcomers. This is another aspect that plays an important role in building up social capital.

The usual view is that building new owner-occupied homes or the sale of rented homes leads to less churn in a district. This study showed that these measures in restructured districts do not automatically have such a stabilising effect. This applies particularly to owner-occupants for whom a low purchase price is an important factor in choosing their place of residence. Many expect to move on again within five years.

Research institute OTB – Delft University of Technology
Reinout Kleinhans, tel. +31 15 278 6117

08/11/2005

Reinout Kleinhans

research

Urban Policy > Urban environment > Urban renewal

Urban restructuring