Transforming neighbourhoods into sustainable communities
Redevco is not just investing in bricks and mortar. Success is achieved by nurturing human connections and community engagement, writes Martijn Horsman.
At Redevco, we passionately believe we have a role to play in realising our vision that cities must make a positive contribution to the health and well-being of both people and planet. Our mission is to lead the transformation of cities to ensure they are sustainable and liveable.
Redevco has a deep retail heritage, but we started to expand into the living sector a few years ago. This has been given additional impulse with the launch of a UK build-to-rent joint venture with Swiss partner SFP, the acquisition of a Dutch residential specialist and the launch of our Redevco Living platform. We are now focusing on large-scale development projects to deliver affordable housing.
Four investment themes
Our strategy is based on four investment themes. The first is repurposing to mixed-use. This is focused on revitalising high streets and involves redeveloping single-use assets to combine several functions: houses, offices or hotels.
Existing buildings are made as sustainable as possible, while a variety of uses brings different types of customers and vibrancy to the location.
The second pillar is retail warehouse parks – multi-let retail parks anchored by convenience retail. We plan to extend these traditional parks into multi-functional ‘city centres’ of suburban areas and exploit their huge ESG potential to generate renewable energy on site using solar panels.
The third theme is leisure and hospitality. We plan to turn old, outdated buildings in city centres and upcoming neighbourhoods into sustainable, innovative and affordable tourist accommodation, catering for the latest and future travel and consumer trends.
Last, but by no means least, the fourth pillar is the living sector, which we see as a key growth area. Our aim is to create homes to help solve the demand-supply imbalance in urban areas and develop sustainable and innovative build-to-rent apartment buildings that cater to the needs of the modern consumer. We are focusing on the German, Dutch and UK residential markets to start with.
In the past few months, we sharpened our urban-living strategy to create the next generation of mixed-use rental housing that can really make an impact. To do this, we need to work with municipalities, local authorities, developers and the community to create liveable neighbourhoods.
A people-centric approach
Our approach is people-centric: we focus on people’s needs and how they prefer to live, rather than how much they can afford to pay. Every redevelopment will adhere to our urban-living philosophy, in which nature, simplicity and human connections play a central role.
In the Netherlands, we are repurposing an office building in Amsterdam into a residential asset.
In Rotterdam, we are building a residential tower near the city centre, close to great retail venues, so we can explore the connection between living and retail.
Meanwhile, in the Hague, we will be developing a 90,000 sq m new-build complex that will be a mix of working, living and leisure concepts. Situated in the HSK district of The Hague, close to one of Holland’s busiest rail stations, it is a lively area with many students and passers-by, within walking distance of the city centre. We see this as a very dynamic project that could have a transformational impact on the neighbourhood.
In Oxford in the UK, we are planning to revitalise and repurpose an old 1960s shopping centre on the city’s outskirts. It is an area with many longstanding residents, which is changing as more students and academics move in. It will be a real transformation of an entire neighbourhood.
A liveable city is made up of vibrant neighbourhoods and, to achieve that, you need a sense of what the people in the area need. They must be able to connect with each other, to feel safe and to feel at home. Be it residents, workers or visitors, they all need to feel they belong. Engagement and interaction between people can only be achieved by building a community. The social aspect is crucial.
Professional management
As for apartment buildings, building a community of residents is a first step, but to make sure it thrives, it needs to be managed professionally. That is why we believe an excellent online and offline operations platform is crucial, offering many different elements, such as concierge services, a maintenance point of contact or common amenities management.
Part of that could be a community app for residents to connect, exchange information and join community initiatives. The community works online and offline as well, so everyone feels invested and at home in the neighbourhood and in the building, not just in their apartment or private space.
In our view, managing the community is a full-time job, which is why we see a need for managers who are on site 24/7, taking care of tenant engagement and interaction, looking after the amenities and the level of service, ensuring good hospitality and facilitating social interaction. Our platform is the guide and smart technologies are the means, but human values, experience and relationships are the drivers.
Some say it is difficult to measure social value, but I believe we can measure success, for instance through community management activities and the data we could collect on the platform.
Success is achieved by encouraging and nurturing human connections and community engagement. It will take time, but we are confident that we can show the benefits of our strategy within five years.
Redevco does not just invest in bricks and mortar, but in people as well. We are investing in creating communities, as we want to lead the transformation of cities into sustainable and liveable communities.
Martijn Horsman is sustainable development manager at Redevco
