Your vibe attracts your tribe – the adaptive reuse of buildings delivering aesthetic experience and social inclusion

Abstract

A significant amount of embodied energy, materials, and economic capital is tied to vacant and underused buildings. Sharing is an effective way to reduce the excess use of space. Beside sharing, much more focus should be placed on maximizing the functional use of existing buildings. Adaptive reuse can be effective not only in mitigating obsolescence, but also in enhancing the vitality of site surroundings. This study aims to explore the potential of sharing and adaptive reuse in delivering circularity, with special focus on the social dimension. We engage in a qualitative, in-depth case study method using interviews, site visits, as well as document and social media reviews as data sources. We study two adaptive reuse projects, where the buildings have been repurposed for collaborative use. The first case is a former museum turned into co-working space, the second is a former industrial site turned into an arts centre. Our findings show that while adaptive reuse is inherently environmentally sustainable, the value delivery is through the social impact of the projects. The social impact can be divided into aesthetic experience, delivered through the preserved historic building, attractive site surroundings and creative content, and social inclusion, delivered through community engagement and accessibility.