The Flemish Government aims to limit fragmented landscapes. Its credo goes: "keep open space free & build more in city and village centers." Municipalities and provinces that want to start using the twofold principle may soon be able to do so thanks to “transferable development projects (TDRs).”
The goal of TDRs-projects is to have owners of problematic locations steer clear from construction. They shall receive a sellable title from the government if they no longer insist on building. Owners of strategic places elsewhere can purchase. It grants an entitlement to extra construction options there.
Examples in the US inspired the idea for such transactions. However, adaptation to the Flemish legal and administrative framework is quite a challenge. The research, therefore, studies tradable development rights from a comparative perspective.
Researcher(s): Johannes Nissen (Faculty of Law), Sigrid Pauwels (Faculty of Design Sciences), Esther van Zimmeren and Bernard Hubeau (Faculty of Law)
Commissioned by: FWO, the FWO supports fundamental and strategic research
Period: 2016 - 2020
Antwerp view from left bank of the Scheldt river
New York Waterfront
Ribbon development: sporadic urban development in rural Flemish areas
The built up Scheldt river delta in Flanders