What’s Old Is New. The Business Case for Adaptive Reuse

Report by ULI (2025) | Conversions, Regeneration, Urban Planning

Curators: Ana-Mihaela Faciu and Alexandra Faciu

Westmount, Canada

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Why we recommend it: Adaptive reuse is emerging as a critical strategy for converting aging buildings into high-performing assets that deliver measurable financial, environmental, and social value. The report provides an in-depth analysis showing how it can drive profitability, revitalize neighborhoods, reduce carbon emissions and preserve cultural identity within a triple bottom line framework that promotes sustainable urban growth and investment. Urbanization is accelerating, and 80% of the global population is expected to live in cities by 2050, most within existing building stock. This means that the need to transform aging infrastructure is becoming urgent. In the U.S. alone, 5.9 million commercial buildings encompassing 96 billion square feet present both a challenge and an opportunity for retrofitting to meet shifting market needs, climate goals, and urban gr…