Adaptive reuse and renovation of vintage buildings makes sense for a lot of reasons.
It’s a greener solution because you are reusing something that already exists rather than building something new; it creates a richer, more authentic experience to our urban streetscape; and it adds life and vitality to areas in need of renewal.
Reusing these buildings and renovating them for higher efficiency—especially with renovations requiring fewer material inputs—have the potential to realize the greatest short-term carbon savings, the study’s authors note.
Besides the benefits of renovation to the environment, preserving vintage buildings and adapting them for modern uses gives our cities more character, allowing us to bring maximum use and value to existing real estate in prime locations.
More people are moving back into our cities to be closer to their work and enjoy all of the amenities downtown has to offer.
This migration to downtown also has a green aspect because it creates neighborhoods where people can live, work and play without getting in their cars.
Photo of Dallas skyline by Xvixionx via Wikipedia.