The self-organizing city: An analysis of the institutionalization of organic urban development in the Netherlands

Due to the impact of the global financial crisis on the Dutch real estate market, the poor financial position of municipalities that resulted from that, and their reluctance to continue with proactive public land development, and an ongoing shift from greenfield development to urban transformation, private sector-led organic urban development increasingly seems to replace the predominant comprehensive, integrated approach to planning and real estate development in the Netherlands. The question we address in this chapter is to what extent these “new” organic development approaches have been institutionalized in the Netherlands. We use insights from theories on institutional change to create a better understanding of the way new planning and development practices institutionalize, and to “measure” whether the new practices have exceeded the threshold of institutionalized behavior. The issue has been further explored in a study of the city of The Hague. We were able to study in-depth characteristics of all urban development projects initiated in The Hague between 2008 and 2015. Our research shows that urban developments in The Hague have indeed become more “organic,” though there is still a prominent role for the municipality. Instead of “traditional” large private development companies, end-users and investors with a long-term interest increasingly appear to take initiatives for new developments. The results of our study may relate to debates taking place in many countries regarding shifting public and private sector roles in planning and development projects.