“In light of the goal of ‘Net Zero Artificialization,’ we must focus on the available land”

The housing needs in Europe are immense. However, the regeneration of industrial wastelands and vacant office buildings could go a long way in meeting these needs. “We know that over the next fifteen years, Europe will need to build between 15 and 20 million homes. In light of the ‘Net Zero Artificialisation’ goal, which invites us to rebuild the city on itself, we must focus on available land, especially wastelands and vacant office buildings. It is estimated that nearly 19,000 km² of wastelands are waiting to be redeveloped, and 300 km² of office buildings are awaiting restructuring,” says Laura Nolier, Director of Strategy and Impact at Ginkgo Advisor.

Very large investment opportunities

The goal is to identify the most relevant sites for redevelopment to position themselves in these urban regeneration projects. “The redevelopment of these wastelands will require, according to estimates, around €4 trillion in funding, which represents very large investment opportunities,” adds Nicolas Menu, Investment Director at Ginkgo Advisor. “However, we identify two main barriers: budgetary issues, the need to find the necessary capital, but also technical challenges, as these wastelands are generally highly polluted and contain asbestos. This is why Ginkgo Advisor was created about ten years ago, with the support of Edmond de Rothschild, to address all these challenges.”

The environmental but also social approach to these types of projects is key. “We need to ensure that each of our projects is in line with a ‘low-carbon’ approach, with issues related to mobility, development of commerce, and services. Additionally, beyond the objective of site decontamination, we seek to redevelop neighborhoods where residents will want to live. Consequently, we need to involve all stakeholders, local residents, and communities, relying on a good territorial diagnosis that has allowed us to identify catalysts,” explains Laura Nolier.

A catalytic role

This second workshop was also an opportunity to present two urban regeneration projects led by Ginkgo Advisor, one in Villeurbanne and the other in Pantin. Near the city center of Villeurbanne, on the site of an old Renault factory, local authorities planned to create a new neighborhood around a new tram stop and a 2-hectare public park. “After a consultation process conducted by the authorities with the former operator, we decontaminated the site, ‘deconstructed’ it, while preserving the industrial heritage, as we kept historic buildings to develop a real estate project around the new public infrastructures,” details Nicolas Menu. For the Pantin project, near Paris, at the foot of the Canal de l’Ourcq, the project involved converting an old steel tube factory while preserving a historic hall to house a music school, restaurants, an architecture office, and office spaces. “It is truly a city project, as we also built a footbridge over the Canal de l’Ourcq to reconnect the site to the city and transport. This is a good example of the catalytic role we aim to have,” observes Nicolas Menu. “These projects existed before, but they needed funding and an operator capable of taking on these risks within a shorter timeframe than what would be required by a public authority or a more traditional real estate developer.”

For these two projects, the funding needs were significant, as the investments in demolition, asbestos removal, and site decontamination amounted to €8 million in Villeurbanne and nearly €11 million in Pantin. “However, the approaches were quite different. In Villeurbanne, the public authorities really defined a new neighborhood, which we built, while in Pantin, it was our partner Alios Développement who initiated a new vision for the area, and Ginkgo helped make it a reality by supporting them in the project,” says Laura Nolier, highlighting this combination of expertise and funding.

 

In partnership with Edmond de Rothschild.