*Perspective Chapter: Reimaging Affordable Housing through Adaptive Reuse of Built Heritage DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110072*

social sustainability principles in the planning and regeneration of built heritage in Canadian cities are significant. These places have diverse and historically defined urban forms as both people shape the places they work, live and play, and places in turn shape their inhabitants. This diversity requires a context-specific approach to urban regeneration, preservation and adaptive reuse so that it contributes to larger community well-being and sense of place. Despite many common features defining the urban form and physical characteristics of built heritage in Canadian cities that have a relatively short history, it is important to recognise the cultural and social diversity of the people living in these areas, their lifestyles and traditions that established the character, landscape and history of these urban areas. The 'one size fits all approach' is not feasible.

Quality affordable housing is a key component of social sustainability, in the form of mixed-income, and mixed tenure neighbourhoods [2, 18]. Older buildings provide a significant source of affordable housing. With a focus on social sustainability, urban regeneration projects in heritage districts and existing neighbourhoods can leverage the redevelopment processes as an opportunity to produce below-market-rate housing, creating positive impacts for many vulnerable people living in post-socialist cities. Furthermore, the degree of social sustainability of any retrofit and adaptive reuse project is highly dependent on accessibility to essential services, both at a neighbourhood and project scale. Adaptive reuse strategies that focus on the needs of underserved and vulnerable communities can support greater accessibility of the public realm, transit and social services such as education and health care, while helping counter the impacts of gentrification [14]. Preserving and enhancing the urban block structure and walkability in conjunction with active transportation systems contributes to the affordability and accessibility of housing that serves the needs of low-income families and seniors [15].

The role of participatory planning processes is a necessary component of achieving social sustainability. Within a holistic planning framework for urban regeneration through adaptive reuse, it is important to collaboratively engage with the community through transparent and collaborative processes to determine priorities in local needs, mobilise local support and leverage financial and in-kind contributions to various aspects of the implementation.
