Development of a Start-Up Plan for Brownfield Redevelopment Projects, a US-German Bilateral Cooperation (SMART)

The SMART project (SMART: Sustainable Management Approach and Redevelopment Tools) arose from a 1990 bilateral agreement between the BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung) (Federal Ministry for Education and Research) and the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). Further information on the bilateral agreement is available on the internet at http://www.bilateral-wg.org/.

Phase III of the US-German bilateral cooperation focused on "Sustainable Brownfield Redevelopment" and was terminated in 2007. Main results of the bilateral cooperation are the documentation of the joint workshops as well as the guidance "Arbeitshilfe zur Erstellung von Start-Up-Plänen für Brachflächen -Version 2007-."

Exchange of Experiences - Workshops
A series of joint workshops were conducted in Germany and in the US facilitating exchange of professional experience and strategies between cities in the U.S. and Germany. The workshops focused on the initiation of the exchange of ideas, knowledge and experience between American and German scientists and practitioners. Contributions from both the private and public sectors were sought, particularly from those at the community level. During a bilateral learning process, the participants became familiar with the particular strengths of their counterparts. Additionally, best-practice examples which demonstrate how urban development can benefit economically, environmentally, and socially from brownfield redevelopment provided helpful suggestions and stimulated new ways of thinking.The topics of the workshops included:

"Economic Tools and Finance for Brownfield Redevelopment" in Charlotte (North Carolina, USA);


"Project Management and Marketing Strategies" in Saarbrücken (Germany);


"Risk Management and Risk Communication" in Portland (Oregon, USA);


"Social Aspects of Brownfield Redevelopment" in Leipzig (Germany);


"Sustainable Reuse" in St. Louis (Missouri, USA);


"Brownfield Redevelopment: Challenges, Solutions, Benefits!" in Berlin (Germany) and Denver (Colorado, USA).

Detailed workshop proceedings in German are available for download at the German Institute of Urban Affairs (Difu) in Berlin (http://www.difu.de/publikationen).

The Guidance for the Development of a Start-Up Plan for Brownfields
In the framework of the US-German corporation the guidance "Arbeitshilfe zur Erstellung von Start-Up-Plänen für Brachflächen" was developed. The purpose of this short but comprehensive guidance document is to encourage site-owners, investors but also communal decision-makers to redevelop brownfields and to provide a helping- hand through the labyrinth of interests and risks, be they real or assumed. Although this guidance does cover the whole range of issues and aspects relevant for brownfield recycling, its aim is not to provide the reader with "instructions for action" in brownfield recycling projects. The synoptical description of planning, ecological, economic and social aspects of brownfield recycling projects provides suggestions for how different stakeholder groups can be addressed with the help of suitably tailored project presentations - the Start-Up Plans.
A trail version of the guidance was tested by several consulting engineers and their recommendations were incorporated in the guidance.
The latest version of the German guidance "Arbeitshilfe zur Erstellung von Start-Up-Plänen für Brachflächen - Version 2007-" can be downloaded here.

Barczewski, Baldur

Braun, Jürgen

Weber, Karolin
Schrenk, Volker

VEGAS

From: 2002-09-01

To: 2006-12-31