SHARE-North Squared at the Housing Europe Annual Conference in Amsterdam on 6 June 2024.Going on stage almost right after Carlos Moreno, creator of the 15-minute city concept, is not an easy task. However, Cornelia Cordes and Esther De Reys took on that challenge.
Mister Moreno and the prior speakers highlighted some of the world’s most pressing current issues, such as climate change, heat waves, the threat of flooding due to ever-more increasing heavy rain events, and last but not least the lack of affordable housing. Our SHARE-North Squared colleagues dove right into this last issue by raising awareness of how some of these challenges could be tackled at the local level through integrating Shared Mobility in (Social) Housing Developments, freeing up and using space in real-estate developments more sustainably.
After introducing the Interreg project SHARE-North Squared briefly, Esther and Cornelia invited 12 volunteers on stage, encircling a clearly marked 12m² area to represent the typical size of a car parking spot.
12 volunteers and 12 m²: What could our hypothetical social housing company “Integrate12” build with a construction budget of 65,000 euros, and how many people would benefit from the developed space?
The designated finance manager meticulously documented every dice throw representing either:
1. The usual options that we would have with old-fashioned parking bylaws represented by Dice No. 1
2. Innovative options that will arise, if we rethink our parking bylaws and developers and architects are given the opportunity to build more sustainable alternatives instead represented by Dice No. 2
It turns out that just three rolls of the first die sufficed to complete the game for the old-fashioned parking bylaw. One standard parking spot costs 15,000 euros, one underground parking spot costs 45,000 euros, and eight bicycle parking spots cost 5,000 euros, exhausting the budget completely. Additionally, it turns out that only 15–17 people would benefit from that space as users of car or bicycle parking.
Luckily, we had dice number two! Even after numerous rolls, the total remained within the budgetary limit at 38,200 euros when we had to end our exercise for the long-awaited coffee break. However, the developed space benefited over 170 people, including not only ordinary parking but also facilities for shared modes of transport such as car, bicycle, cargo bike, and e-scooter sharing, as well as public spaces like urban green spaces.
Our key message resonated clearly: Developers, architects, housing companies, and public decision-makers must unite and recognize the advantages of integrating shared mobility modes into real estate, particularly in housing developments.
It was a pleasure and an honor to perform at this inspiring international event. It brought together not just sustainable urban visionaries and prominent social housing practitioners, but also highlighted future pathways towards achieving more cohesive and sustainable urban development.
Written by: Cornelia Cordes
Edited by: Steffie De Moor