Research

This page entails all the published research work on heritage renewal, adaptive reuse, transformation, etc.

Starting from 2015, it includes a research into 111 renewal cases in the Netherlands; an evaluation of the Rotterdam Office Convenant, a Masterthesis on complexity in Heritage Renewal processes and research to create a framework for the development of innovative business, governance, financing
and partnership models for adaptive reuse of heritage, aimed at affordable
housing in Amsterdam.

In september 2025 a parttime PhD research has started at the TU Delft, in collaboration with the Cultural Heritage Agency in the Netherlands. This research will focus on the social and societal impact that heritage renewal projects can make. It includes case study research for inpiration, a research into impact measurement tools, advice on how to facilitate social and societal impact of heritage projects and processes, next to finance and governance possibilities.

All published articles will become open source.

Paper – Working title: Exploring social impact in heritage renewal projects

Work in progress

Fostering Social Impact Through Heritage Renewal Projects in the Netherlands. A comprehensive overview of possible goals and actions.

Heritage Reloaded

Publication date: June 30th, 2017, Masterthesis TU Delft

Complexity is seen as the main bottleneck to start re-use processes for vacant heritage buildings. Researchers ask for the development of conceptual frameworks to explore project complexity and for tools to manage these complex processes.
This research focuses on collaborative complexity and aims firstly to provide an understanding of the complexity within the collaboration in heritage re-use projects and secondly to reduce this complexity with a clear overview on the role and responsibility divisions of stakeholders in the process.

Author: Rosan Pallada

Amsterdam Reloaded

Publication date: 25th of January, AMS Institute

Amsterdam Reloaded is a study of innovative business, governance, financing and collaboration models to repurpose vacant heritage buildings in Amsterdam for affordable housing. The main objectives were to improve affordable housing, strengthen the empowerment of users and communities, and reduce waste, energy and material use.

Authors: Hilde Remøy, Darinka Czischke, Rosan Pallada

Evaluating an Approach to Office Vacancy in Rotterdam

Publication date: December 2015, TU Delft, Faculty of Architecture Management in the Built Environment

A study into the results achieved by the Rotterdam municipality’s 2011 office covenant. Four years after the start, the study investigated the extent to which the covenant’s objectives were achieved and the extent to which the municipality’s organization contributed to achieving the goals in the process. The results showed what works well and where there is still room for improvement. Future steps were indicated to realize these improvements.

Authors: Hilde Remøy, Rosan Pallada, Agnes Franzen, Fred Hobma

Evaluation for NRP Gulden Feniks 2015

Publication date: 2015, NRP Gulden Feniks 2015, Stichting NRP (no longer open source)

An evaluation on 111 cases that where sent in for the Golden Phoenix Award 2015.
NRP Gulden Feniks is a prize to learn from, to inspire and to give an update on the current state of the profession. The submitted projects give an image of the spirit of times in which we live. They indicate what is going on, which innovative solutions are found and which solutions are already used broadly. All entries have points that we can learn from. Among these entries, the jury is looking for gems, example projects that show how it can be done swell, or how it actually should be done.

Author: Rosan Pallada