Brownfields: renewing existing urban spaces

Major cities are reaching their physical limits, and increasing urban sprawl can no longer be an effective and sustainable solution. One possible answer: regenerating and renewing existing abandoned urban spaces.¹ This can be done with brownfield development.

The benefits of brownfields

Brownfield developments are previously developed sites that are no longer in use or are out of date. By replacing or repurposing outdated buildings found on brownfield sites, you can improve the quality and performance of existing building stock without requiring additional land.

Brownfield developments offer opportunities to:

• regenerate existing sites 
• reuse finite materials and reduce waste
• improve natural habitats and enhance biodiversity
• reduce construction emissions.

Brownfields can offer more than just circularity benefits. It gives Goodman opportunities to use our expertise to build new healthy habitats, improve biodiversity, and contribute to a more vibrant urban landscape. 

Brownfield sites are often close to existing transport infrastructure and large populations and workforces. These strategic locations provide our customers with opportunities to find efficiencies within their logistics operations, and to reduce transportation-related emissions and costs. Brownfield spaces are also usually close to cafes, restaurants and health and wellbeing facilities. This helps our customers attract and retain their employees, and even potentially serve the local community.

Goodman’s commitment to brownfields

More than 50% of Goodman’s global development program occurs on brownfield sites. 

Brownfield sites are integral to Goodman’s sustainability strategy and support our commitment to circularity by reducing, recycling and reusing existing resources for as long as possible. These sites give us the opportunity to design with circularity in mind right from the start, revitalising under-utilised properties and sites into sustainable and efficient urban spaces

Our teams in Europe and New Zealand have been capitalising on these circularity benefits of reusing and recycling for a few years now, with around 90-95% of the existing site materials reused and recycled onsite or locally on some developments. In the US we have been employing circular techniques including crushing and reusing concrete on site, while recent developments in South Sydney, Australia have been great examples of regeneration an adaptive-reuse. 

¹ Cities Alive - Arup

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