POTENTIAL   ADAPTIVE  REUSE

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Cities are continuously evolving, and so are the buildings that shape them. Rather than being understood as static objects with fixed functions, existing buildings can be seen as long-term spatial resources capable of accommodating new uses as urban needs change. Their transformation is not merely a matter of preservation; it reduces demolition and embodied carbon, conserves material resources, supports a more circular approach to urban development, and creates new tectonic and spatial possibilities by allowing existing structures to be reinterpreted through different programs and modes of occupation.

Evaluating the potential for adaptive reuse therefore means more than identifying vacant or obsolete buildings. It means revealing the latent capacities embedded within the existing city—its ability to generate new spatial experiences, respond to emerging societal needs, and continuously reinvent itself through transformation rather than replacement. At a time when cities face pressing housing shortages and environmental challenges, unlocking these potentials may offer ecological, social, spatial, and architectural opportunities. The fundamental question then becomes: Which buildings are suitable for which new uses, under what urban conditions, and what untapped potentials remain to be revealed?