Socio-Economic Indicators for the Ex-Post Evaluation of Brownfield Rehabilitation: A Case Study

The reuse of brownfields is becoming a necessary option to meet the current requirements of urban densification and for the preservation of agricultural land, as well as for improvement in the quality of life. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the main objectives and benefits of a rehabilitation project implemented in Canada. The rehabilitation of the brownfield site Lachine-Turcot-Petite Bourgogne in Montreal was analyzed according to four indicators (revenue, average cost of rent, rental usage, and home resale price). The findings of the study demonstrate that the expectations (socio-economic benefits derived from Southwest borough-City of Montreal) of the local community were not respected and that the initial objectives of the project changed during its implementation. In particular, the average rent increased considerably after four years, by 165.47% in the period 2001-2006. The percentage of resident homeowners increased from 89% to about 95% in 10 years, and in the 1996-2014 period the total income per household increased from about $25,000 to about $78,000. We propose an evaluation tool that integrates an ontology of the elements necessary for decision-making and local indicators related to the environmental and socio-economic components with the goal of meeting the expectations of the local community.