Decision-Making Support for Housing Projects in Post-Industrial Areas

Abstract

Post-industrial areas, despite often showing immense damage and high soil contamination, equally often stand out via many positive assets, displaying immense potential. Post-industrial areas, in most cases, commemorate the modernisation and development of a country’s market in urban space. It is expressed in surviving buildings and urban complexes, many of which possess high historical and aesthetic value. We reviewed the literature, identified gaps and demonstrated that this subject is relevant and topical. Insofar as analyses of the urban and architectural structure of post-industrial heritage and assessments of their potential use appear often in the literature, we found that scholars rarely discussed redeveloping post-industrial areas via housing projects. The publications, methods and tools we discussed lacked solutions that could support decision-making in redeveloping post-industrial areas into housing while accounting for the needs and requirements of all stakeholders. Our initial study was based on an online survey performed among a group of specialist experts with close ties to the Polish construction market. Due to the specificity of decayed and degraded areas, any action taken entails high risk and requires a broad range of analyses, which are often not carried out due to said specificity. The main focus of our study was to determine the need to develop a new tool and the necessity of accounting for aspects that directly affect housing projects to be sited in post-industrial areas. As a result, we demonstrated that Polish practitioners displayed a need for a tool to be developed that could aid in decision-making and assessing the potential of redeveloping post-industrial areas into housing areas and that would account for the legal, organisational, technical and economic aspects and that of market analysis.

1. Introduction

All regions transform over time, for instance in terms of function or via the loss of previous assets. Care for harmonious urban development is a crucial aspect that affects the aesthetic value of space and quality of life, which carries over to its positive perception among locals and visitors. These matters are particularly crucial in reference to stagnant and decayed post-industrial areas, especially on the social, functional or market plane, and even more so in the case of areas of high heritage value. Such territories consist of spaces that are often dear to local communities and significant to their identity. Mining or metallurgy, as branches of industry, defined the ethic of the everyday lives of local populations and shaped the built environment as much as they did culture and custom. Areas that have been deprived of their previous use are typically undesirable in any city, which is why they should be adapted to new uses while preserving any heritage value present. The literature features many cases of the selection of a new form of use for specific buildings, including historical ones [1,2].

For instance, in Polish law, the Farmland and Forest Protection Act [3] stipulates that decayed areas are those whose utilitarian value has decreased, for instance due to industrial activity, while devastated land consists of areas that have completely lost their utilitarian value. This act also defines land recultivation, understood as either bestowing or restoring utilitarian value to devastated land via proper terrain modelling, enhancing physical and chemical properties and rebuilding or providing roads. Land recultivation does not need to be confined to agriculture or forestry. In Poland, an Ordinance of the Minister for the Environment [4] acknowledges soil as contaminated when the concentration of at least one listed substance exceeds an acceptable value, which should be determined in three stages.

Post-industrial areas, despite often being characterised by significant damage and high soil contamination, equally often stand out through positive assets. They are located in attractive areas, have elaborate infrastructural layouts and are often quite large, thereby offering significant potential. From the standpoint of historical heritage, they are often cases where implementing urban planning ideas is linked with shaping the housing environment, e.g., layouts similar to garden cities in workers’ districts, erected in the vicinity of the first factories and workshops.

Care for the sustainable development of cities is an important aspect of governance that influences attractiveness and enhances conditions in which humans function [1,5]. Regenerating post-industrial areas contributes to creating a new, unique urban structure and to introducing amenities. From a real estate development standpoint, projects realised in decayed areas are risky ventures that require considerable experience, knowledge and many detailed risk and benefit analyses. They can include risk assessments investigating a given site’s past history and industrial activity to gauge potential threats, which can aid in estimating uncertainty factors. Due to limited buildable land supply and an increasing awareness among municipal officials, developers and users, brownfields—land with prior, typically post-industrial development present, where hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants may be found—have become an object of interest of these groups. Despite their specificity and additional risks during the real estate development process, they remain the least used urban resource. Planning a feasible and rational brownfield redevelopment strategy is a complex task that requires a range of studies, calculations and analyses of economic, social, physical and environmental factors [6].

In the case of construction projects, many problematic issues must be solved, such as the choice of a building complex layout in the context of sustainability parameters [7], the comfort of use of newly designed and pre-existing buildings [8], problems associated with carrying out projects in large urban agglomerations [9], the choice of technology for detailed work including excavation [10], the organisation of construction work in multiple-structure projects [11] and communication between project participants [12]. Additional site-specific obstacles and problems may also arise, including but not limited to soil contamination or the presence of structures whose demolition is difficult or hazardous.

The first objective of this paper was to analyse the state of the art in terms of the literature and existing studies of post-industrial areas through the prism of real estate development, to determine familiarity with, the spread and the significance of the problem among scholars and define gaps in this regard. Defining the research problem was to determine the scope of the literature base required and identify gaps within it.

The second goal was to discuss the findings of an initial survey study performed on a group of Polish practitioners from the construction sector with close ties to brownfield redevelopment. The study was to outline the fundamental factors that condition brownfield redevelopment potential and that affect such projects. Furthermore, the study was to identify demand for a tool that could aid decision-making concerning siting housing projects in post-industrial areas, along with identifying aspects that should be accounted for throughout.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Selection of the Literature for Analysis

We identified the following research problems and questions: what had been identified, investigated and documented in terms of assessing the potential of brownfield redevelopment into housing, primarily in an economic, technological, legal and market analysis aspect, and how? The objective was to define gaps in the literature. In 2021, we used the Web of Science (WoS) database to search for publications. The main search criteria were the keywords: ‘brownfield’, ‘post-industrial area’, ‘remediation’ and ‘revitalisation’. The keyword search covered titles, abstracts and keyword lists. We searched for literature among all the disciplines available in the database from 1990–2021. We found 2089 publications from all around the world. After concluding our search and selecting publications for further investigation, we reviewed and analysed key material. Afterwards, we narrowed the scope of our search as many publications did not specifically discuss the problem under study. We limited our search to English-language publications from 2000–2021 from among the following WoS categories: Environmental Studies and Urban Studies, Environmental Sciences, Urban Planning, Construction and Building Technology, Regional and Urban Planning. As a result, we obtained a literature database encompassing 961 publications from around the world.

2.2. Survey Study Methodology

In our initial study, we focused on redeveloping brownfields into housing, with an emphasis on areas of high heritage value. To identify the most common problems faced by developers, we designed and performed a survey study. We surveyed a group of specialised experts from Poland who had close ties to the construction sector and were interested in redeveloping brownfields. The survey was based on a questionnaire. The experts qualified for the study were found to be competent and to consist of persons with close ties with the problem in their everyday praxis. They were representatives of the construction sector, with a substantial amount of substantive knowledge, experience and independent opinions and thus represented different views. They formed a purposive sample, which allowed us to obtain more effective results from the standpoint of our study.

The unpaid survey was carried out in 2020. The intent of the study was to gauge attitudes towards brownfield redevelopment projects in countries with economies in transition towards developed status. Such countries can be considered to have extensive industrial areas that, in the light of a reorientation towards a more service-based economy, turn into brownfields as a result of outsourcing or loss of competitiveness. They can also be said to have developing cities that encircle such brownfields with development, inducing pressure to reintroduce them into the urban fabric. Poland can be considered to fit this description. Its economy is considered developed by the World Bank but not by the International Monetary Fund. One can therefore argue that findings for Poland can be seen as representative for countries with post-transition and recently developed economies.

We sent a link to an online questionnaire to specialised experts from Poland using e-mail. The sample ultimately consisted of 13 representatives of small, medium and large companies. The questionnaire was directed both to experts with practical knowledge and experience in carrying out projects sited in post-industrial areas and to persons who were expanding their companies’ operations, entering the market by focusing on housing projects in areas that aligned with the specificity of decayed and degraded areas.

The study was performed on a purposive sample that consisted of construction industry experts. The experts that qualified for the survey were operating in Poland at the time of the study. From among these experts, 46% were conducting construction work in the south of the country, 31% operated in construction companies from central Poland, while 23% were individuals who executed projects in the north of Poland.

Figure 1 displays the share of each company size category that the businesses employing the respondents belonged to. Among the specialised experts, 36% represented small companies, the most (46%) represented medium-sized companies, while 18% reported being part of large companies.

The experts were asked to identify the legal form of the company they were representing. This information has been presented in Figure 2. From among the respondents, the largest number (46%) declared that they represented a limited liability company, 24% declared representing a limited joint-stock partnership, 15% declared representing a joint-stock company, while the remaining 15% declared representing a civil law partnership. There were no respondents who represented other legal forms of business entities.

A diagram of the methodology of our study, including that of the selection of literature for analysis, has been presented in Figure 3.

3. Results

3.1. Literature Review Results

Figure 4 shows the number of publications from 2000–2020 found by searching for the ‘brownfield’ keyword. We observed a steady increase in interest in the subject among scholars over the past two decades. The year 2001 saw the smallest number of publications on post-industrial areas. The highest number was recorded in 2010, with 107 publications from all over the world.

Depending on their area, terrain and distinctive regional features, countries can differ in terms of how prevalent a problem post-industrial areas are. In

Table 1. List of 15 countries with the greatest number of publications including the keyword ‘brownfield’ published between 2000 and 2020.

Item No.	Region	No. of Publications	% of 961 Publications
1	USA	228	24
2	ENGLAND	142	15
3	ITALY	91	9
4	CHINA	89	9
5	CANADA	56	6
6	GERMANY	55	6
7	CZECH REPUBLIC	40	4
8	AUSTRALIA	35	4
9	NETHERLANDS	33	3
10	SPAIN	31	3
11	FRANCE	30	3
12	BELGIUM	26	3
13	SCOTLAND	22	2
14	POLAND	18	2
15	ROMANIA	16	2

, we have listed data concerning the number of publications with the keyword ‘brownfield’ published in the years 2000–2020, sorted by country in descending order.

The greatest number of publications were from the US, amounting to 24% of all publications found and accounted for in this analysis. Poland came in 14th place with only 18 publications including the keyword ‘brownfield’ published in the past 20 years. A high number of publications came from England—142 publications—and from Italy and China, with 91 and 89 articles on post-industrial area issues published, respectively.

We sorted the publications found into five main thematic groups: spatial order, risk and benefits, public perception, funding and project sequencing. Many scholars were found to investigate the problem under study due to the significance of sustainable development, proper urban space management and thus urban development. Papers that explored such subjects were sorted into the spatial order category. The next thematic category concerned risk and benefits and discussed the problem through the prism of positive and negative aspects of projects in post-industrial areas. Another group concerned financing and presented post-industrial areas in terms of the cost of revitalising brownfields and the impact of financial risk on relevant decision-making. Many scholars were of the opinion that society plays a crucial role in decision-making concerning the measures that affect post-industrial areas, which is why we sorted them into the public perception category. The last matter discussed alongside brownfields was project sequencing, as scholars very often explored and developed tools that accounted for priorities related to post-industrial areas.

3.2. Detailed Analysis of Selected Publications

One of the final stages of our literature review was an analysis of key publications and presentation of a discussion of the collected material. Our investigation focused on publications that strictly focused on the subject under discussion and contributed to achieving our research goals. Due to plans for further studies of the Polish market, we also added papers by Polish scholars published in journals that were not indexed in the WoS database to our study.

3.2.1. Spatial Order

Every locality, regardless of location, population count, urban layout or function, is different, has a unique structure and has one-of-a-kind elements. The attractiveness of urban space is significantly affected by the development and structure of the city. According to Pennisi [13,14], the renovation of abandoned building complexes requires a highly elaborate planning approach based on the conservation of cultural, historical, technological and environmental factors. In [14], Jopek described contemporary cities as complex functio-spatial systems, including the factors that affect the development of the urban forms of contemporary cities and their identities. At present, large agglomerations suffer from urban sprawl, i.e., a process of the expansion of suburban areas into territories with less development, such as rural regions. Exurbanisation contributes to landscape decay and spatial disorder. Exurbanisation was also discussed by Nowak [15], who saw its cause as being the improvement of access to public transport, e.g., buses and trains, and to private transport. Delimiting an impassable boundary of the city, controlling development density or housing prices could considerably contribute to halting urban spatial development and aid in the internal redevelopment of cities and the revitalisation of decayed areas, including those of heritage value.

The literature features numerous cases of housing projects that involved the adaptive reuse of post-industrial heritage and that could be deemed successful. Wdowiarz-Bilska [16] presented the case of Łódź, a Polish city which enjoyed a period of immensely dynamic development when the country was undergoing industrialisation. What made Łódź unique was the extreme predominance of the textile industry in its urban fabric, which resulted in numerous post-factory complexes with high-value architectural tissue, as discussed by Szpakowska-Loranc and Matusik [17]. The adaptive reuse of buildings, while preserving local identity, resulted in the creation of an attractive and commercially successful space that respected place-based heritage. Fidan and Onur [18] highlighted the need to change the paradigm of thinking about the conservation of post-industrial heritage from a point-based paradigm to a wider one that would encompass entire cities and even regions. Here, infrastructure should be given more attention, as it can be reused and enlivened. Gyurkovich et al. [19] noted the rising awareness of the need to protect and preserve areas associated with the post-industrial heritage of the most recent past, such as the Mistrzejowice district in Krakow. Seruga [20] discussed the redevelopment of post-industrial areas into housing districts, presenting the case of La Confluence in Lyon, France. Such areas can be used as cases of well and inclusively designed living spaces that offer access to high-quality urban open spaces and an optimal availability to essential services. Multiple cases of post-industrial areas with a rich heritage that were revitalised as housing districts and where heritage was seen as a clearly positive element were discussed by Gyurkovich and Gyurkovich [21].

In Poland, industry also propelled the development of many small cities. Due to their small scale and widespread development model based on a single dominant function, the transformation of the 1990s led to the appearance of a notable number of post-industrial areas in these localities, as discussed by Wójtowicz-Wróbel [22]. The case of the African city of Kenadsa, documented by Mostadi and Biara [23] is an interesting case of post-industrial heritage based on the culture of coal mining set in a non-Euro-centric cultural reality. The authors described urban space by using post-industrial areas as landmarks which local communities see as their natural cultural landscape.

As stated previously, real estate development projects in post-industrial areas are vulnerable to various threats. Orlenko et al. [24] noted the need for academic, interactive support of heritage conservation, especially in the case of housing, which is exploited via the identification and collection of causes and the reasons of their worsening decay. Żmudzińska-Nowak et al. [25] also discussed the issue of updating conservation guidelines for housing using residential buildings in Upper Silesia as a case study. The research targeted single-family housing from the second half of the twentieth century, which is only starting to be widely perceived through the prism of heritage. Another currently visible threat is gentrification. Due to it being ‘fashionable’ to revitalise post-industrial areas, there is now a threat of ‘undesired’ users being pushed out of their places of residence or the spaces they use. New housing, whose price exceeds the financial capabilities of most members of society, is becoming exclusive and exclusionary, as documented by Squires and Hutchinson [26]. This issue is also tied with using the perceived heritage value of an area as a marketing device intended to justify high property prices used to absorb the cost of any necessary expensive procedures.

The legal aspects of the conservation of post-industrial heritage, with a specific focus on mining facilities, was discussed by Lenartowicz and Ostręga [27]. They stressed the need for including proper conservation measures in zoning plans, which can be a valuable part of efforts to preserve heritage. Chidester [28] presented an important discussion of twentieth-century industrial heritage in his paper on Detroit’s Motor City and its effect on local African American communities, lending an important voice to the debate on the heritage of the recent past and the archaeological study of actively developing cities. Konior and Pokojska [29] also presented an overview of the significance of heritage in the revitalisation of post-industrial areas, accentuating its positive impact on real estate project image, tying revitalisation with sustainable development policies. Zhang et al. [30] performed a bibliometric analysis of the literature and investigated how research on industrial heritage evolved in Western Europe and China.

The marketing potential of post-industrial areas can be exemplified by how numerous post-industrial areas become tourist destinations and can thus lead to a revitalisation of not only the former industrial area itself, but also its vicinity and even an entire city. Gunay [31] presented an overview of how industrial heritage is being taken advantage of by the so-called heritage industry, linked primarily with tourism, and analysed the case of Istanbul, Turkey, and its Golden Horn. In a similar vein, Pardo Abad [32] investigated how Spain’s Riotinto and Almaden mining areas performed as elements of sustainable tourism and how they shaped the landscape. Tweed and Sutherland [33] performed a study of how built heritage binds cultural groups and communities across generations using Belfast as a case study, demonstrating the link between intangible and tangible heritage and how relations between the two can be studied using surveys. Another side of revitalising post-industrial areas is the placement of new, iconic architecture within their bounds so as to induce what has been dubbed the ‘Bilbao effect’, as discussed by Patterson on the example of several attempts in North America [34].

Skrenty [35] analysed the fundamental principles of spatial planning, such as: the requirement to adhere to spatial order in both urban layout and architecture; architectural and landscape assets; environmental conservation, including water management and the preservation of agricultural and forest areas; sustainable development; the conservation of cultural heritage, monuments and contemporary cultural assets; healthcare and the safety of people and property, as well as the needs of the disabled; the economic value of space; property rights; defensibility and state security; needs concerning technical infrastructure development, especially high-bandwidth networks. The author reviewed the verdicts of administrative courts and identified the objective of introducing principles that impact the development of urban space and planning and spatial development legislation. In [36], Luther analysed and assessed the transitions occurring in Krakow in the context of the placement of post-industrial areas and their role in the city’s spatial structure. His studies initially pointed to a decline in the significance and area of industrial areas in the city’s central zones. The relocation of production plants outside city centres leads to the emergence of abandoned, decayed and polluted areas that are perceived negatively by the public. According to Maciejewska and Ułanicka [37], one should rationally manage decayed areas while adhering to all the principles of sustainable development. The adaptive reuse of post-industrial areas is necessary due to the immense scale of the decay of urban space and its positive impact on a city’s image. Zhong et al. [38] presented the characteristics of various greening initiatives in decayed areas and their costs and potential benefits. Their findings demonstrated that such projects should be executed in densely developed urban areas.

3.2.2. Risk and Benefits

Janiszek [39] described the measures that need to be taken prior to the planning and design of any changes in areas damaged by mining. External factors that arise from the potential of an area for adaptive reuse and internal factors that arise from an area’s characteristics and properties were also identified as major aspects. Gawor and Kobylańska [40] analysed and assessed the spatial transformation associated with the revitalisation of post-industrial areas, mostly in the case of former mining territories. They pointed to opportunities, threats and errors in measures intended to redevelop decayed areas and proposed that the process scheme of redeveloping post-industrial areas be changed.

A non-standard approach to decayed areas was proposed by Faltejsek et al. [41], who presented this problem as a building life cycle phase, yet this is a specific form of it, as it is not analysed during the initial life cycle phase. According to the authors, building information modelling (BIM) can be used to solve problems encountered in post-industrial urban areas and the applications of their findings are in the simulation of pollution and contamination spread over an area, in decision-making concerning and the carrying out of revitalisation projects. Baker et al. [42] discussed the possibility of either demolishing or adapting existing buildings in decayed areas and compared actual decisions with those suggested by design support tools. Based on their own interviews, they analysed five case studies (three buildings and two zoning plans). Cancelling projects based on either the demolition or adaptive reuse of a building was influenced by the value of cultural heritage, architecture and the opinions of relevant authorities, while the approval of demolition was positively affected by maximising land value, the lack of particular historical or architectural value or the building’s poor condition. The authors’ analysis indicated that the currently available tools can be useful in assessing the value of asset portfolios, but they needed enhancement and extension by the addition of rating various final applications and adaptation forms. Aigwi et al. [43] used cases of urban areas in New Zealand to identify historical buildings which, in their opinion, should be subjected to adaptive reuse. Using a literature review, they indicated five main aspects (sustainable development, heritage protection, socio-cultural aspects, building utility and legal regulations) and assessment criteria necessary in decision-making concerning the selection of buildings for adaptive reuse. In developing countries, studies on decayed areas are at a very early stage. Ahmad et al. [44] used a literature review to identify and analyse obstacles to the revitalisation of post-industrial areas in Pakistan. Based on their own investigation using Interpretative Structural Modelling (ISM) and MICMAC, they presented dependent and independent obstacles, which allowed them to present the problem and define a trajectory intended to achieve sustainable development. Ahmad et al. [45] used the same city as a case study and discussed it from the perspective of stakeholders. They demonstrated that low-rate loans and government subsidies, unified definitions, clear guidelines and a simplified adaptation of decayed areas, coupled with technical and infrastructural support, increased interest among potential developers and showed that technological research and development were the most crucial factors in the promotion of post-industrial area redevelopment strategies in Pakistan. Furthermore, the authors also noted that it might be possible to model interactions between the strategy and its impact on the redevelopment of post-industrial areas.

An analysis of 200 post-industrial areas redeveloped by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was performed by Green [46], who also identified positive factors that provide motivations to redevelop, revitalise or recultivate. He identified three correlations:

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a correlation between the socio-economic factor and the development of post-industrial areas,

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a correlation between sustainable development and the development of post-industrial areas,

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a correlation between tax stimulus and the development of post-industrial areas.

Ameller et al. [47] argued that the remodelling of post-industrial areas alleviates negative consequences of decayed and contaminated areas. They identified barriers that limit the revitalisation of post-industrial areas, which allowed them to develop decision-making support tools to rank projects in terms of stability and benefits to society. The authors also formulated institutional guidelines that could aid in engaging all interested parties in projects intended to restore post-industrial areas to use. The impact of urban development on sustainable development was presented by Abed and Yakhlef [48] on the example of post-industrial areas in Amman, Jordan. Together with stakeholders, they formulated a flexible development strategy dependent on terrain specificity and its problems.

Frantal et al. [49] presented the findings of a comparative study carried out in four European countries—the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Romania—the objective of which was to identify and classify success factors and determine barriers to the regeneration of post-industrial areas. The problem of difficulties during revitalisation projects was discussed by Goosen and Fitchett [50]. They discussed the post-industrial areas of South Africa. Using the literature, they assessed three areas—the Newtown suburb of Johannesburg, the Egoli Gas gas plant grounds and the small Gauteng coastal town of Modderfontein—in terms of factors that lead to failure in revitalising post-industrial areas.

The problem of post-industrial areas affects numerous cities, as demonstrated by De Sousa [51]. Based on a survey study and four site visits, he argued that despite similarities in needs observed in post-industrial areas, due to a varied property market and site-specificity, any projects must be highly varied. Planning or designing the transformation of post-industrial areas was found to be complicated and to require numerous analyses. Bruns-Berentelg et al. [52] used the urban areas of Copenhagen (Denmark) and Hamburg (Germany) to discuss cases of remodelling, presenting two divergent forms of governance dependent on the specificity and needs of a given city. Zielke and Waibel [53] used analytical frameworks and a set of co-dependent categories to illustrate the complexity of decision-making. They analysed the management of Guangzhou’s post-industrial area restructuring with the use of many mutually dependent categories. Denis [54] presented cases of post-industrial area reuse in Europe. She argued that when reusing an area, e.g., for housing or commercial spaces, one should adhere to the precepts of sustainable development and find a solution that achieves maximum benefits both in ecological and economic terms. Niitamo [55] used projects focusing on decayed areas conducted in Helsinki, Amsterdam and Copenhagen to demonstrate just how much the work of planners is affected by external political and economic factors and argued that citizens do not take an active part in design and are merely informed of the design.

3.2.3. Public Perception

Failures in revitalising decayed areas can stem from a lack of public involvement. Conflicts and cooperation in the redevelopment of decayed areas were discussed by Blokhuis et al. [56], who showed that stakeholders are more eager to cooperate when they can receive additional gains. Beames et al. [57] used the case study of abandoned decayed areas in the Flemish region of Belgium and used proximity analysis to determine which public amenities were key to increasing the benefits to local communities. The study by Campbell, Eckerd and Kim [58] showed the involvement of communities in the recultivation of decayed areas in Los Angeles, California. The authors suggested that, in the process of land recultivation, society should take an active part in identifying places in need of intervention. Lehigha et al. [59] analysed a post-industrial redevelopment project in Tampa, Florida, funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency and noted that the lack of participation of equitable stakeholders and the public in planning, especially in decision-making concerning sustainable development, can considerably impact the final effects of these types of initiatives. A survey study performed in Al-Fuheis in Jordan, discussed by Abu Zayed and Al-Kurdi [60], demonstrated the significant role of communities in decision-making concerning the revitalisation of post-industrial areas.

Tonin and Bonifaci [61] used the case of Porto Marghera in Italy (Venice) to analyse the role of private and public entities in the revitalisation of post-industrial areas. They also investigated the impact of terrain characteristics on the regeneration of post-industrial areas and, assuming a multi-level approach, identified factors that can increase an area’s attractiveness to developers. Glumac and Decoville [62] argued that the revitalisation of post-industrial areas has become a priority for municipal authorities. Efforts are intended to restore such areas to satisfy various types of demand, e.g., for housing, services or recreation, without unnecessary spatial urban growth into undeveloped or greenfield areas. However, they noted problems that may appear alongside such projects with the example of Belval in Luxembourg. They highlighted the challenges and public–private partnership agreements, as well as limitations to citizen participation and spatial integration. Oppio et al. [63] suggested that conflicts stemming from achieving the strategic goals of urban development intended to facilitate post-industrial area reuse should be analysed on a case-by-case basis, but that there do exist certain general sets of characteristics that define such projects. In [64] Glumac et al. proposed the innovative Dominance-based Rough Set Approach (DRSA) which accounted for two main objectives, exploring the link between criteria associated with the municipal, institutional, negotiation, developmental and economic aspects and the consequences of urban area development and supporting negotiations in alignment with a set of proper uses. Darchen and Poitras [65] used two housing projects involving the transformation of the South-West borough in Montreal (Griffintown and Bassins-du-Nouveau Havre) to analyse, using secondary research and a survey, how public expectations affect projects by private entities. They suggested that more constraints should be placed on developers so as to obtain the greatest benefits and profit, both in financial, environmental, social and economic terms.

Due to exurbanisation and the decreasing amount of undeveloped land in cities, developers increasingly often purchase decayed areas to redevelop and reuse them. According to Goosen and Fitchett [50], the development of post-industrial areas limits the spatial development of cities into undeveloped areas and allows cities to make fuller use of existing infrastructure. However, efforts to revitalise decayed areas bear a significant risk of project failure, which is why they are often cancelled. Dunning et al. [66] believe that increasing the density of existing urban areas supports proper urban development and links housing with transport infrastructure, alleviating excessive spatial development. The problem of siting housing that bears the risk of disruptions to the proper development of a city was presented on the example of Cracow, Poland, by Klus [67]. Budner and Pawlicka [68] used the case of HafenCity in Hamburg to assess the transformation and revitalisation and their impact on enhancing the attractiveness of the real estate market. They highlighted the effects that revitalisation has in urban, architectural and economic terms. Sobolewska and Walczak [69] used the AHP method to determine the optimal revitalisation of a post-industrial area—a former textile factory located in Zielona Góra, Poland. They analysed three alternatives of the possible revitalisation and rated thirteen factors out of four groups concerning spatial, socio-economic, legal and functional aspects. Peter and Yang [70] analysed the development of Tanzania’s largest city—Dar es Salaam—in which all aspects of sustainable development were ignored. They presented a secondary study based on an analysis of available planning documents. They suggested that these plans should be used as a document with a leading role in urban development when striving to make the best use of space.

3.2.4. Funding

The reuse of post-industrial areas is tied to a high risk of project failure, as many problems with project funding can arise. Kramarova [71] argued that the revitalisation of any post-industrial area requires a case-by-case approach, yet the entire process can be described as being formed of the following stages: site identification, finding a developer and new functions and uses, execution, correct land use and project return on investment. The author compared databases of decayed areas with data required to determine the price of such areas to make it easier to assess property value and encourage potential developers and investors to purchase such areas. Tureckova et al. [72] focused on the perception of post-industrial areas and their impact on the prices of local property, with the examples of three municipalities: Karvin, Orlov and Detmarovice in the Czech Republic. According to Tureckova and Nevima [73], decayed areas affect the surrounding area via the real estate market. Their study involved a survey carried out in four municipalities in the Czech Republic (Olomouc, Skrben, Stonava and Zivotice) in the years 2017–2018 and showed that post-industrial areas were perceived negatively and had an adverse effect on the price of adjacent property.

De Sousa et al. [74] discussed a similar problem. Using quantification methods, they investigated the impact of the redevelopment of over 100 decayed areas on the value of nearby housing properties located in Milwaukee and Minneapolis in the United States. They demonstrated that the redevelopment of decayed areas led to an increase in nearby apartment prices, yet when the project size and value and the amount of public funding were compared against factors such as proximity to transport infrastructure, this price impact was comparatively low.

Carozzi [75] assessed the cost sensitivity of unused or insufficiently used land in England. In his analysis of data showing variability in housing demand, he demonstrated that land price differences cause a rise in interest in decayed areas and the redevelopment of post-industrial areas. Jania [76] presented contemporary challenges that cities face in terms of revitalising post-industrial areas. Based on a review of the literature, Jania presented various methods of capital sourcing for use by private entities on the property market and identified factors that condition capital availability for private entities. Zagórska and Makowski [77] described the method of sourcing capital by developers using bonds and noted that the redevelopment of post-industrial areas was becoming increasingly popular but was nevertheless associated with a high cost of making an area usable again. According to Trouw et al. [78], the development of post-industrial areas is comparatively less frequent due to stigmatisation, namely associating post-industrial areas with specific characteristics, primarily negative ones. Using a survey study, the authors interviewed developers in the Denver area and reported that, in such cases, developers demand a risk premium. This is also why there is a considerable difference between the starting price and the bid, which is much greater than the cost associated with decontaminating and redeveloping decayed areas. Chang and Li [79] used land transaction data from Shanghai for the years 2007–2019 to prove that decayed areas were sold at lower prices than undeveloped land.

The risk of redeveloping decayed areas is very high. These are uninhabited, abandoned areas, often with a polluted environment or contaminated soil, which is a significant barrier to redevelopment. One aspect that has a positive impact on the perception of such areas is their often attractive location, fully equipped with infrastructure, yet it is often in poor condition and requires renovation. Heritage value may also come into play here. Glumac and Islam [80] presented a discussion of the authors’ prior research on demand, housing preferences in terms of the reuse of office and post-industrial buildings. In the authors’ opinion, studies often do not present the perspective of the end user and adaptive reuse schemes of buildings in terms of their utility and economic durability. The authors based their study on the case of a city in the Netherlands. Almost 70% of the study’s respondents, mostly young people without a family of their own, expressed a readiness to rent a flat in an adapted building regardless of its previous form of use.

Zhang et al. [81] presented determinants that affected the intent to purchase properties in post-industrial areas in China. They observed that, due to the adaptation of the industrial structure and limited land supply, China experienced a sudden rise in the number of development projects targeting post-industrial areas. In the opinion of the authors, the success of such projects is largely dependent on public acceptance, and there are too few studies and analyses of the problem. The paper was extended by a typical approach involving the theory of planned behaviour model while including trust factors and risk perception. The authors used structural equation modelling to analyse the results of a survey study and noted that enhancing the model to include additional factors greatly improved its interpretability, while also exploring what can affect one’s desire to purchase property in a post-industrial area. In the opinion of Navratil et al. [82], resident preferences considerably impact the use of a given decayed area that is to be subjected to revitalisation. Based on a comparative analysis of views expressed by residents of Czech cities and using the Anova model, they found significant differences in resident preferences for various types of revitalisations (demolition, renovation, adaptive reuse) in reference to a city’s characteristics, the location of post-industrial areas and the proximity of residents.

3.2.5. Project Sequencing

The issue of post-industrial areas consists of numerous elements, which is why it requires numerous analyses. Wu et al. [83] approached the risk present in decayed areas in a multi-criteria manner that accounted for both easily perceivable risks and risks communicated by people with direct ties to the issue. After performing a study involving the collection of expert opinions, they used the AHP method to formulate a cohesive hierarchy of risk factors that affect decisions concerning decayed areas, mostly in terms of financial decisions and reporting their value.

The authors of [5] identified major criteria of carrying out various scenarios of the redevelopment of decayed areas located in Vilnius, Lithuania, in the area of establishing areas with housing, greenery, commercial premises, recreation, industry or leaving the area as a preserve. The framework developed by the authors is intended to support decision-making in the redevelopment of decayed areas and aid sustainable urban planning. According to Limasset et al. [84], the design of effective priority identification tools requires thorough analysis. They performed a discussion among experts, based on which they identified major Points of Attention (PoA) and listed them in an extensive table intended to aid developers, service providers, regulatory bodies and public and private land managers, decision-makers and all others who are interested in post-industrial areas and the identification of major factors and their impact on the use of tools that can identify major priorities for decayed areas. The main types of land revitalisation programmes in the United States were discussed by Tzoumis and Driehost [85]. They reported that, over time, funding was decreased, which made the programmes less effective. The authors analysed the projects in terms of the consequences they had had on local communities, as defunding led to exclusion from gentrification, namely exclusion from the necessity to remodel and alter the character of a city sector. Planning and allocating funds for the revitalisation of brownfields requires numerous analyses by municipal authorities and difficulties in this regard were reported by the Chinese government. This problem was explored by Han et al. [86], who presented a framework that aids in classifying brownfields and assigning them a priority. The authors claimed that this tool can aid in making correct decisions in the selection of an area for revitalisation initiation. They proposed that, when dealing with brownfields, numerous factors must be accounted for, especially precepts that facilitate sustainable development. Bartke et al. [87] proposed a tool that analysed criteria-based decisions (MCDA) and developed the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool (TBPT). This same problem was explored by Pizzol et al. [88], who presented an online version of the same tool that could aid stakeholders in identifying brownfields that can be slated for redevelopment or further investigation. Here, priorities were set using a set of success factors, identified as a part of a systematic stakeholder engagement procedure, and which were integrated using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis methodology (MCDA) that consisted of three pillars: sustainable development, goals and perspectives. Participative rating that uses multi-criteria decision models is a valuable tool that supports decision-making concerning land use, but it is currently rarely used in the context of brownfields.

Tendero and Plottu [89] used the cases of polluted areas in France to demonstrate that the Electre I method can be used to select brownfield redevelopment projects and that this process ensures choice cohesion and transparency. Han et al. [90] used a graphical model of conflict resolution (GMCR) to develop a decision-making structure that can be used during negotiation and that simulates conflicts that may appear in brownfields.

Below, in

Table 2. List of problems discussed in publications concerning decision-making in brownfield redevelopment.

Item No.	Title	Authors	Year	Problem	Solution
1	Targeted selection of brownfields from portfolios for sustainable regeneration: user experiences from five cases testing the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool	Bartke S., Martinat S., Klusacek P., Pizzol L., Alexandrescu F., Frantal, B., Critto A., Zabeo A.	2016	Classifying brownfields for redevelopment	Online tool that analyses decisions on classifying brownfields for redevelopment
2	Evaluating the significance of criteria contributing to decision-making on brownfield land redevelopment strategies in urban areas.	Burinskiene M., Bielinskas V., Podviezko A., Gurskiene V. i Maliene V.	2017	Classifying risk factors	Original framework that supports decision-making in brownfield redevelopment that accounts for sustainable development
3	Brownfield risk communication and evaluation.	Wu H., Tiwari P., Han S. S., Chan T.-K.	2017	Classifying risk factors	Tool based on the AHP method that forms a risk factor hierarchy that affects decisions on brownfields in terms of finance and value
4	Points of attention in designing tools for regional brownfield prioritization	Limasset E., Pizzol L., Merly C., Gatchett A. M., Le Guern C., Martinat S., Klusacek P., Bartke S.	2018	Classifying risk factors	Factors were identified and structured, and their impact on decisions concerning the identification of parameters distinctive of brownfields was discussed
5	A two-stage decision framework for resolving brownfield conflicts	Han Q., Zhu Y., Ke G. Y., Lin H.	2019	Classifying brownfields for redevelopment	Overview of decision-making structure used during negotiation, using a simulation of conflicts that can appear in brownfields
6	A participatory decision support system for contaminated brownfield redevelopment: a case study from France	Tendero M., Plottu, B.	2019	Classifying brownfields for redevelopment	Presentation of a tool based on the Electre I method, used to identify and rate brownfield redevelopment project importance
7	Determinants of purchase intention for real estate developed on industrial brownfields: evidence from China.	Zhang Y., Wang C., Tian W., Zhang G.	2020	Classifying determinants that affect purchase	Overview of determinants that affect purchase of property located in post-industrial areas

, we present the publications that we found in the WoS indexing database, whose authors discussed tools and systems that analyse decision-making problems concerning brownfields. Their authors often discuss tools that can rate and classify areas in terms of project priority.

As evidenced by the review presented, the adaptive reuse of post-industrial areas has been a subject of global academic discussions. However, despite numerous academic reports being available, it has not been fully explored and remains relevant. The literature on brownfields and their heritage demonstrates that humanity is aware of this problem. Oliveira et al. [91] highlighted that academics, practitioners and decision-makers must all focus on protecting land as it is a key element of humanity’s survival and of ensuring the resilience of cities. Site-specific risk factors, which remain mostly unknown, have been known to repel potential developers from engaging in projects in post-industrial areas.

Certain models and tools used in the revitalisation of brownfields have been proposed in global literature, and yet the problem requires further study. It should be noted that most papers dealt with the problem of brownfields and their adaptation in a highly generalised manner, while those that focused on specific cases of areas of heritage value can prove unhelpful in drawing generalised conclusions. The problem is also rarely explored from the perspective of problems encountered by developers engaging in adaptive reuse projects that target post-industrial areas with the intent of converting them into housing, as well as demand-related expectations. To fill this research gap, a tool needs to be developed that would account for demand-related priorities and requirements, the developer’s capabilities and zoning requirements.

4. Survey Study

4.1. Sample Overview

The respondents were asked about their plans concerning the execution of projects that targeted post-industrial areas, with 46% responding that they were exploring an option of engaging in a real estate development project in such an area. These experts were then asked an open-ended question about what motivated them to engage in such a project. Profit was reported to be the most motivating factor, along with the potential to purchase land with an attractive location and land price, with another factor being the decreasing amount of undeveloped land reserves and environmental benefits.

The remaining group of experts (54%), as a result of previous experience, reported not planning to engage in these types of projects. This group of experts identified a range of factors that discouraged them from engaging in a development project in a post-industrial area. The most-often named factors were: complicated legal requirements and the long wait time for administrative decisions, the requirement to perform soil pollution tests and the presence of multiple dangerous substances that can cause complications and problems in the cleaning process and necessitate land recultivation, which can incur costs that the developer is not prepared for. Another problem that developers must face is identifying a method that is best suited to neutralising or removing chemically polluted soil. The large number of unsurveyed utilities and the high cost of remodelling or rebuilding said utilities in the event of their clash with built infrastructure relative to conducting a development project on undeveloped land are also problems.

Expert Rating Concordance Testing

Using the insight gained with a survey bears the risk of obtaining incorrect or non-concordant results. This very often stems from having insufficient knowledge and experience or exceedingly optimistic views about a given subject.

The data collected from the experts were subjected to an analysis that determined their concordance. The degree of expert opinion concordance, using a rating scale, was tested using Kendall’s concordance coefficient. In the assessment of factor significance, the experts used a five-point rating scale: 5–high significance, 4–considerable significance, 3–average significance, 2–little significance and 1–insignificant.

To determine the significance of factors that can motivate one to engage in a real estate development project in a post-industrial area, a group of experts with prior experience in redevelopment projects was surveyed. Five experts (m = 5) were asked to rate the significance of n factors (n = 8) on a scale from 1 to k.

A procedure of averaging tied ranks was performed and the sum of ranks for each criterion was calculated, along with the Ti sum, the correction to account for tied ranks. These parameters have been presented in

Table 3. List of rank sums for each criterion.

n = 8 m = 5	Profit	Experience Gain	Low Land Purchase Price	Access to Site in an Attractive Location	Improvement of the Aesthetic of Urban Space	Halting Urban Spatial Growth	Attractive Site Location	Company Policy oriented towards Environmental Protection	Ti
E1	2.5	7.5	2.5	2.5	5.5	5.5	2.5	7.5	6
E2	1	3	3	3	7	7	5	7	4
E3	1	6	2	3	6	6	6	6	10
E4	1	5.5	5.5	2.5	5.5	5.5	2.5	8	5.5
E5	1	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	28
Total	6.5	27	18	16	29	29	21	33.5	53.5

.

We also defined the sum of squared deviations Rj (Formula (1)) from the average, which was 546.50.

$$\mathrm{R}=\mathrm{S}=\frac{\mathrm{m}\left(\mathrm{n}+1\right)}{2}$$

(1)

The coefficient of concordance was calculated as

$$\mathrm{W}=\frac{\mathrm{S}}{\mathrm{Smax}-\mathrm{mT}}=0.6984$$

(2)

While the average of Spearman’s rank correlations (Formula (3)) for the question analysed was:

$${\mathsf{\rho }}_{av}=\frac{\mathrm{mW}-1}{\mathrm{m}-1}=0.6230$$

(3)

The result showed a high concordance among the opinions of the experts who participated in the survey. From the chi-squared distribution table for df = 7 (namely n − 1) and significance level α = 0.05 value $x_a^2=14.0671$, while value $x_r^2=24.4404$, which means that the zero hypothesis concerning there being no concordance between the rankings was rejected $x_r^2>x_a^2$. In addition, the test probability (p-value) was calculated as p = 0.00095, therefore p < α, which confirms that the null hypothesis of non-concordance can be rejected and an alternative hypothesis assuming concordance can be adopted. This confirms the statistical significance of the responses.

4.2. Discussion on the Significance of Factors That Affect Decisions about Engaging in Real Estate Development Projects That Target Post-Industrial Areas

Initially, the experts were asked to state what they saw as potentially the greatest motivation to engage in a project in a post-industrial area. During the following stage of the survey, they were asked to rate the most popular factors that motivated them to engage in such projects and do so on a five-point scale. The factors identified by experts were found to correspond with the factors rated, with additional factors reported, such as: gaining experience, improvement of the aesthetics of urban space, halting the spatial growth of cities, attractive site setting and the development company’s policy stressing environmental protection.

In this case, dividing the experts into two groups was crucial, as their perception of the significance of each factor turned out to be completely different. Figure 5 displays the significance of factors that can motivate one to engage in a real estate development project in a post-industrial area as rated by experts with experience in such projects. Figure 6 displays the responses of experts without experience with such projects. It is visible that experts with practical experience were highly specific in identifying the determining factors in terms of highly significant and insignificant ratings.

Profit was rated as significant by both groups, yet 100% of respondents with experience rated it as very significant (versus 25% of respondents from the group without such experience). As much as 63% from the group without experience saw access to a site in an attractive location as highly significant, while in the other group this same factor was rated the same by 20% of respondents.

In the case of persons with experience, it was notable that the vast majority of them (80%) reported the environmental protection factor as insignificant, yet 63% of respondents from the group without experience rated it as significant. These are completely different ratings and stem from the expert division criterion.

Gaining experience was rated as significant by both groups, with 15% from the group with experience rating it as significant, while 31% of those without experience rated it this way.

Figure 7 presents the significance of factors that affect the siting of a real estate development project in a post-industrial area, as rated by experts. Collective analysis (accounting for highly significant and significant as grouped together, with the same adopted for insignificant and mostly insignificant) showed that 100% of the respondents identified price as the most significant factor. The next factor, identified as significant by 85% of respondents, was the degree of an area’s contamination and the pollution of its soil. The least important factor, identified by 31% of respondents, concerned the historical aspects of the site and its cultural heritage, and this was the only factor to be rated as insignificant by 15% of respondents.

Figure 8 presents the significance of risk factors present when engaging in a real estate development project in a post-industrial area. The experts surveyed expressed the greatest concern for risk associated with generally understood soil contamination. Out of all the respondents, 62% reported that the risk of incurring high land recultivation costs was a significant factor. A group amounting to 15% of respondents rated problems associated with a site’s history and cultural heritage as insignificant. The risk associated with providing proper safety to workers was highly significant to 31% of respondents, while 69% of respondents found it significant. Problems associated with market analysis were rated as significant by 62% of the respondents.

Identification of Demand for a Decision-Making Support Tool for Use in Siting Housing Projects in Post-Industrial Areas

As a part of the survey, the experts were asked whether they knew of any tools that supported decision-making in the context of construction projects in post-industrial areas and were asked to identify an aspect in which such a tool would be the most useful.

From among the experts, 85% did not know of any decision-making support tools dedicated to real estate development projects in post-industrial areas that would also account for the distinctive characteristics of such projects. The remaining 15% of respondents reported that they were familiar with such a tool: market analysis, which they claimed was used in every other type of project, soil contamination testing and internal analytical procedures, yet they also equivocally noted that they lacked detailed information concerning projects in post-industrial areas.

The experts were asked whether, in the future, they would be likely to use an assessment support tool that would rate the potential of adapting a post-industrial area into a housing complex and, as a result, 77% of respondents answered affirmatively to being likely to use such a tool in the future. The remaining respondents (23%), due to having little knowledge of the operation of such tools and no confidence in their effectiveness, reported they were not likely to do so.

The experts were asked whether they saw a need for such a new tool to account for aspects of legal regulations, technologies, organisation, market analysis or economics. These aspects were rated on a five-point scale (5–high significance, 4–considerable significance, 3–average significance, 2–little significance, 1–insignificant). The result of these ratings has been presented in Figure 9.

In the opinion of experts, each of the indicated aspects was significant in the development of a new tool. The legal aspect was rated as highly significant or considerably significant by 70% of experts. The economic and technological aspect was rated as significant by 61% and 62% of respondents, respectively. The experts also expressed a need and likeliness to use aid in the market aspect, as 54% of experts rated it as a significant aspect in planning a project in a post-industrial area. The organisational aspect was rated as either significant or highly significant by 46% of respondents. Respondents who expressed disinterest in the use of the tool rated aspects as insignificant.

5. Discussion

The study was performed as a survey on a group of specialised experts with close ties to the construction market in Poland. The experts had experience in carrying out construction projects or wanted to engage in such projects while targeting post-industrial areas in the near future. The questions were structured in a manner that gauged the significance of each factor at play in the decision-making on whether or not to engage in such a project, without rating them as positive or negative influences. This was intended to prevent the results being skewed by potential respondents ignoring the survey due to their disinterest in engaging in such projects. Numerous factors that had been expected to deter potential developers from such projects were rated highly significant by the majority of respondents, which can testify to the validity of this approach.

Due to the specificity of decayed areas and brownfields, these are high-risk projects that require numerous analyses and are often cancelled due to these factors, as confirmed by Goosen and Fitchett. Factors that motivate one to engage in projects that redevelop or revitalise such areas were listed by Green, while primary studies confirmed that profit and the desire to purchase land in a suitable location at a low price was the most significantly motivating factor that affected the decision to engage in a project in a post-industrial area. Kramarova showed that the revitalisation of a post-industrial area requires a case-by-case, innovative approach, which stems from site specificity and various forms of management, as demonstrated by Bruns-Berentelg et al., and needs that a given location results in, as shown by Janiszek and Pennisi.

One element that merits particular attention is the stance of respondents towards the historical heritage of post-industrial complexes, which received the highest number of ‘insignificant’ ratings out of all the elements ranked and was among the elements with the lowest amount of ‘high significance’ ratings. This can be interpreted in a number of ways. First, it must be accounted for that the item’s name in the questionnaire was ‘problems with the site’s history and cultural heritage’, which the respondents may have viewed as referring to as a negative factor. This could indicate that the lack of significance actually means that the respondents did not view a site’s history and heritage value as a hindrance and were prepared to handle them and can be seen as a positive sign from the standpoint of the need for greater awareness of heritage conservation. Second, it is also possible that problems associated with cultural heritage are insignificant when compared to the other items rated, as they can be approached in a number of ways and, as multiple cases of revitalisation projects have showed, heritage can be seen as a decidedly positive element and a marketing tool.

Despite numerous tools that support the planning of housing projects presented and proposed in the literature, as demonstrated in Table 3, a great number of experts who participated in the study reported a lack of familiarity with decision-making support tools. The remaining experts, all of whom had experience in executing projects in brownfield areas, jointly pointed out that existing tools such as market analysis, soil contamination tests and internal analytical procedures, all lacked specific information and guidelines concerning housing projects sited in post-industrial areas.

The main focus of the study was to determine the need for developing a new tool and the necessity for it to account for aspects that directly affect the execution of a housing development project in a post-industrial area. It was demonstrated that Polish practitioners reported a significant need for a decision-making support tool that could aid them in assessing the potential of adapting post-industrial areas into housing complexes in terms of: legal regulations, technical and organisational aspects, market analysis and economics. The experts mostly stressed deficiencies in market analysis, economics and legal aspects.

The experts who took part in our study formed a purposive sample due to the fact that determining the population size in this case was very difficult. The purposive selection of the experts was deliberate and based on their familiarity with the subject under study and we believe that this sample can be considered representative [92,93]. Babbie indicated that such sample selection is justified when all the elements of a population cannot be listed or when this is very difficult [94]. During expert selection, we used a filter to ensure that only persons with a great deal of experience and suitable competencies formed the sample, so that the information gleaned from their responses would be significant and backed by the respondents’ competence. Thus, the sample, despite its low count, was of high quality. The objective of our paper was to present an in-depth literature review intended to demonstrate gaps and research needs within the field under investigation. The survey (which was an initial study based on a small, high-quality sample) was to add evidence in support of our hypothesis. We plan further investigation and surveys of the field, which would be based on a larger sample.

While the sample size was small, the study’s continuation and thus enlargement of the sample size in 2022, at the time when this paper was finalised, is not possible due to geopolitical and economic factors. Potential new respondents, as Polish residents, could display a greater aversity to risk during this difficult time. Factoring this in would effectively result in two separate studies: one in which the responses were informed by a 2020 perspective and one for the current, highly unpredictable outlook and expected high market volatility.

6. Conclusions

In summary, one can conclude that the most significant factor in making the decision to engage in a project in a post-industrial area is the greatest possible profit in the shortest amount of time. Due to limited undeveloped land reserves, real estate developers increasingly often express interest in brownfields or decayed areas, which often possess heritage value but that nevertheless are highly specific and can create a range of problems during a project. To limit such risks, one needs to perform a range of extensive analyses that can aid in foreseeing possible scenarios. In addition, keeping in mind the proper development of the city, so that its structure can be functional, compliant with the precepts of sustainable development and thus well-maintained and aesthetically pleasing, is very significant, as is ensuring that valuable cultural heritage is preserved, properly highlighted and exhibited.

The authors, using a review of the literature, demonstrated existing deficiencies and the relevance of the subject in question. Few scholars who discuss the problem of post-industrial areas study them from the perspective of redeveloping them as housing complexes. Among the publications, methods and tools developed by researchers from all around the world, there is a lack of solutions that could support decision-making concerning the potential to adapt post-industrial areas into housing complexes while accounting for the needs and requirements developers, potential buyers and municipal authorities, including heritage conservation services. In this study, the need to support practitioners and their eagerness to use aid offered by researchers has been demonstrated.

Post-industrial sites are often located in attractive areas, with abundant infrastructure and numerous amenities. Developers often purchase such land to adapt it into housing. To gain insight into the priorities of potential buyers and their perception of revitalisation efforts aimed at executing a housing project, a study of relevant demand would have to be performed. A study based on identifying requirements and perceptions of the problem in question by potential buyers could aid in determining their needs and perceptions of projects executed in post-industrial areas.

The authors also prepared a tool that could support the assessment of the potential to subject a post-industrial area to adaptive reuse such as housing and that would be intended to facilitate project execution. Such a system shall be presented and documented in a subsequent paper. According to the authors, this tool should comprehensively account for the legal, technical, organisational, market and economic aspects of projects. Analysing each aspect separately could point to problems and complications and aid in formulating recommendations. Thus, a developer could potentially be able to plan their efforts and solutions for a range of risk factors at an early stage of a project. The final decision of whether to engage in a real estate development project in a post-industrial area shall remain at the discretion of the developer. Such a tool could aid practitioners in making decisions and identifying any risks present, which could positively affect the development of cities and prevent the disruption of their structure, contributing to their correct extension, as well as the preservation of valuable heritage assets and historical substance, which could survive in a form adapted to a different use.