'We need town councillors with balls in Europe.' That is in short one of the conclusions of a large European project that examined the importance of research into urban planning and economic (re)development. 'We have to look within the European context which research is wanted and how to support the cities. The practical application is still underexposed, and there is a lack of administrative support and knowledge of business.' These are the words of Maarten M.J. van Loon (TNO-Environment and Geosiences), member of the co-ordinating team of the project SUPER (Sustainable Urban Planning and Economic (Re)development), a project in which new research themes into urban regeneration has been examined on behalf of the European Union - especially with regard to sustainable entrepreneurship and competitiveness.

Maarten M.J. van Loon

Van Loon: 'Practice shows that realising urban regeneration has become very complicated, because so many parties are involved. Many restructuring projects come to a standstill due to this complexity, achieving less than expected. This usually occurs where restructuring is very important. In order to break freefrom this deadlock, powerful town councillors are required. Councillors who pursue a clear policy and who have the guts to be less popular at times. A good example is what happened in Tours, France. Restructuring of a city area was very necessary, but consultation came to a standstill. The mayor took action. He completely changed the approach, took control and pulled it off.'

A total of 55 partners from 15 European countries worked together in the SUPER project and its pilot projects. Their advice to the European Union is to focus research activities on the area of sustainable economic development:
• Post-urbanisation, urban / suburban relations
• Environmental impacts and industrial ecology
• Labour market and quality of life
• Integrated approach
• Regional co-operation
The project itself will also contribute towards this by publishing a book and by making existing knowledge more accessible on the website.

More information on the SUPER-project
Project e-mail
Maarten van Loon