Occasionally, I get to report from disused industrial premises which have been sold at a residential property auction to buyers with dreams of converting them back into housing or community projects. Usually, these sites are located in cities or their suburbs and often benefit from good transport links and communications infrastructure.

Such was the case with a derelict warehouse near Birmingham that I visited recently. Although a pretty unsightly lot – made up of tatty, falling down buildings, interestingly the value was in the redundant fixtures, fittings and machinery that was left abandoned and included in the sale.

This activity of taking disused industrial buildings and giving them a new lease of life is referred to as ‘Urban reclamation’ and it is very much supported by the government and local authorities. Indeed strict targets have been set to encourage building of the majority of new houses on brownfield land to avoid using up precious Greenfield sites and preserve the countryside.

Urban Reclamation is essentially reclaiming space in the city for a community's use again, either for housing, leisure, or business. The space is likely to have been used before, and as with my property in Birmingham, may consist of derelict or abandoned buildings and waste ground.

Here are some of the issues that you may come across if you undertake a project like this:

1. Firstly, depending on the previous use, the land and/or buildings may have contamination issues, and so before doing anything, you should have a specialist survey done by an experienced environmental consultant. This involves an analysis of the soil, groundwater and surface water through testing for hazardous compounds, and ensures that appropriate measures are taken to reduce any identified risks. For more information about identifying and treating contaminated land, you could contact the Environment Agency www.environment-agency.gov.uk). Getting an assessment done early on will unearth any potential environmental risks and give you an idea of what it will cost to remedy. This can then help in your calculations of how much to pay for the land.

2. If the land is deemed to be a brownfield site, it may be eligible for a Government Grant to help convert it back to use as housing or business space. If the site is large enough, then any new development will be encouraged to combine recreation and public space, housing units, and business units. Essentially, bringing a derelict or disused area back to life should meet the needs of the whole community and so careful planning and consultation with the local residents is likely to be necessary. 

Using Existing Buildings

If the site has existing buildings on it, then there are further considerations:

You might need to establish:

• Legal status of any buildings - who currently owns them, and if they can be bought, can it be legally used for the purposes you have in mind?
• Safety – Are beings structurally sound? If not, how much work would it take to make them safe?
• Access - is the access to the building good enough, both for renovation needs, in terms of getting building materials to and from the site, and afterwards when it should be used for the purpose you intend?

Using an existing building is perhaps the best example of sustainable development, if minimal resources are needed to make the building safe and habitable again. Also from an aesthetic viewpoint, older buildings are often more attractive than newer ones, and a sensitive architect would highlight interesting features which you might wish to emphasise such as exposing brickwork or internal supporting beams.

Reclaiming for community and individual use

The most positive point of reclaiming buildings is that instead of land and buildings being left to rot and stagnate, they can be reclaimed, restored, and re-used. This often has a tremendously re-generative effect upon a local community, and could result in other buildings and pieces of land being restored. Some of the industrial heartland of the UK, particularly in the north of the country, became an ugly eyesore in the eighties when industries moved, or died - but many of these communities have undertaken urban reclamation projects such as old mills being converted for large-scale housing units, car factories becoming small business parks, and even grand old stately homes, have become amusement parks and family attractions.

Reclaiming old buildings and disused land has so much potential, is a ‘green’ way of developing and done well, will usually get a really positive reaction amongst the local community.

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