Purpose: The decisions taken today relating to urban renewal interventions are rarely supported by logical and operational methodologies capable of effectively rationalising selection processes. For this purpose, it is necessary to propose and implement analysis models with the aim of promoting the sustainable development of the territory. The purpose of this paper is to define a model for the optimal allocation of scarce resources. Design/methodology/approach: The Discrete Linear Programming (DLP) is used for selecting investments aimed at achieving financial, social, cultural and environmental sustainability. Findings: The proposed model lends itself to the construction of investment plans on behalf of both types of decision makers, of both a public and a private nature. Research limitations/implications: All projects are evaluated according to multi-criteria logics, so that it is possible to find compromise solutions, in accordance with the stakeholders’ different preferences. Practical implications: The model, written with A Mathematical Programming Language using DLP logics, is tested – case study – so as to define an investment programme finalised for urban renewal of a vast area. Social implications: The proposed econometric model makes it possible to obtain the optimal combination of projects for urban renewal with a view to achieving the sustainable development of the territory. Originality/value: Using the proposed model, all projects are evaluated according to multi-criteria logics, so that it is possible to find compromise solutions, in accordance with the stakeholders’ different preferences.

The protection of cultural heritage is essential to preserve the memory of the territory and its communities, but its enhancement is also important. In this perspective, the theme of choosing the best use for historic buildings, which often make up a substantial and widespread part of real estate and which can become a driving force for the sustainable development of cities, is important. These decision-making processes find effective support tools in Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods, able to consider the multiple financial, social, cultural, and environmental effects that the enhancement project generates. In order to identify the most appropriate evaluation approach to select the best use of the building, this paper proposes a comparison between some of the best-known MCDM methods: Analitic Hierarchy Process (AHP), ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la REalité (ELECTRE), Tecnique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), and the Compromise Ranking Method (VIKOR). The comparative analysis gives rise to the validity of the AHP, which is useful for reducing the problem into its essential components, so as to make a rational comparison among the design alternatives based on different criteria. The novelty of the research is the characterization of the hierarchical structure of the model, as well as the selection of criteria and indicators of economic evaluation. The application of the model to a real case of recovery and enhancement of a former convent in the province of Salerno (Italy) verifies the effectiveness of the tool and its adaptability to the specificities of the case study.

Vast metropolitan areas include both urban areas and rural outskirts. Between these areas, there are strong links to the point which they cannot be examined separately. There is a contemporary presence of residential function and working activity in the rural outskirts, as well as in the typical sector of agriculture. Therefore, the production of goods and services for the city requires a combined analysis, due to the large territory which it has to consider. The evolution of the population of such a large territory can be studied in great detail, with reference to the single census area and with the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). This means that such a demographic development produces an effect on the values of the urban real estate. This work demonstrates the existing interconnections between urban areas and rural outskirts. Data collection on trends of the population living in the Naples metropolitan area and the house prices associated with this area, and the post spatial processing of such data, allows for the establishment of thematic maps according to which a model capable of interpreting the population development is defined. A study of the statistical correlations shows the consequences that the population dynamics produce for property prices. In addition, the diachronic analysis of the sales prices of residential buildings demonstrates that economic functions, exclusive of certain urban or rural territories, end up distributing and integrating.

Despite the economic crisis still heavily affecting most of Europe, a possible resumption can be found in the revitalization of public and private investments. These investments should be directed not only towards the strategic areas of infrastructures and production, but also to those which allow for a higher level of the quality of life (sports facilities, parks, etc.). In such cases, the need to balance the reasons of financial sustainability with environmental and social profiles is even more evident. Thus, multicriteria techniques, supporting complex assessments, should be implemented together with a monetary feasibility study (cost-benefit analysis). Multidimensional methods allow for the aggregation of different profiles into overall indicators. This study gives an account of how the application and comparison of multi-criteria approaches based on tools characterized by a higher or lower level of compensation between criteria can broaden the spectrum of analysis of the problems and lead to a more subtle logic of funding for public works and works of public utility, with a more current and mature sharing of profitability between private investors and users of community infrastructures.