PARCOUR explores how previously used land is redeveloped. The project includes nine case studies across three countries: Brazil, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Previously developed land, or brownfield sites, offer towns and cities the opportunity to create new infrastructure that can be used as public, office or industrial space and housing to meet the needs of the community. PARCOUR is designed to provide new ways of understanding the importance of how the redevelopment process is governed, with a particular focus on the contracts between the public sector bodies and private developers who deliver the new schemes. The project is designed to explore how the public can benefit from public-private contracts in terms of what is delivered through the partnership. The important question to be answered is: how does using contracts impact on public accountability and the public interest?

Contracts are increasingly used as planning tools to regulate the actions of public, private, and civil actors involved in urban regeneration. The contractual relationships between these actors instigate a specific form of governance. PARCOUR argues that there are important implications of contractual planning for sustainable urban development, public accountability, and the public interest at large.

I was the Principal Coordinator for PARCOUR with the Human Geography, Planning and International Development department at the University of Amsterdam as the project coordinator.

To what extent does private sector involvement in urban regeneration serve and support sustainable urban development?

To what extent can public accountability and the public interest be incorporated in contractual arrangements?

How are public accountability and the public interest defined and embodied in contractual planning tools dealing with regeneration projects, and what does this mean in practice?

To analyse the contractual relationships in urban regeneration projects

To understand the impact of contractual governance arrangements on the redevelopment of urban areas

To explain the regulatory roles played by actors and instruments involved in urban redevelopment

To identify the benefits residents can reap from contractual governance

To define contractual planning tools that serve public accountability and the public interest

Research was undertaken in Brazil, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. The nine  case studies were: OUCAE, Porto Maravilha and PPP Casa Paulista in Brazil; Belvedere, Buiksloterham and Central City in the Netherlands; and Canon’s Marsh, Firepool and Gloucester Quays in the UK.