Introduction

Urban and neighbourhood renewal in Denmark first became of public interest and the subject of legislation in the early twentieth century. Concern was based on health, fire and sanitation issues with the focus on the condition of individual dwellings. It was not until the early 1940s that the first urban quarter in Copenhagen was renewed through demolition and rebuilding. Based on legislation from 1939, with revisions in 1959 and 1969, the slum clearance approach was strongly criticised for disrupting local life and destroying cultural assets. It was not until 1983 that more sensitive policies were adopted, when new legislation opened the way for urban and housing renewal programmes which established the rights of residents and provided subsidies for improvement work. At the same time, large non-profit social housing estates, built in the 1960s and 1970s, came under scrutiny. Initially, these modernist-style estates were labelled ‘neighbourhoods with construction problems’ which needed attention to their flat roofs and crumbling concrete but it was not long before the housing management and life opportunities of residents were also being questioned. A neighbourhood renewal approach was then developed which combined a focus on the social integration of immigrants and their children with local involvement, resident participation and the physical improvement of housing and its environment.

During the first decade of the twenty-first century, local and area-based initiatives became the established approach to creating ‘inclusive neighbourhoods’ and changing the social mix. The open stigmatisation of deprived neighbourhoods as ‘ghettos’ by the government and political leaders worked against the combined efforts of municipalities, residents and housing organisations to create positive solutions. At the same time, housing renewal programmes began to include rural as well as urban areas and now almost the entire housing and building stock in Denmark is considered a potential target for refurbishment and energy efficiency measures.

The challenge for housing renewal is to achieve a balance between the preservation of the built heritage, sustainability, innovation, job creation and demolition. Since 2007, the financial and economic crisis and the accompanying reduction in private investment have impeded progress. Population loss and the economic recession prevalent in western and southern Denmark have reduced regional housing demand. These situations have become major concerns for the municipalities affected, and proposals for demolishing empty houses in villages and rural areas are under active consideration.