Evaluating stakeholders preferences: Reconciling heritage and sustainability

Abstract

The subsistence of traditional shophouse is threatened by demolition, unsympathetic changes and rapid redevelopment pace. Most often, the decisions pertaining to redevelopment of this built heritage are based on guidelines unrepresentative of the multi-cultural society in Malaysia. Involvement of direct stakeholders, namely owners and tenants, are minimal in the decision process. This paper provides an objective evaluation for the traditional shophouse redevelopment, incorporating multiple stakeholders' preferences. It focuses on exploring conflicts and values of the stakeholders using Multiple Criteria Analysis, or MCA technique. Using a common MCA technique, the Analytical Hierarchy Process, or AHP, stakeholders' preferences on a set of criteria for redevelopment decision are derived and compared. It is found that stakeholders' preferences are dissimilar even within their homogenous groups. This study contributes to discovering the potential of MCA to increase transparency in redevelopment decisions involving built heritage and multiple stakeholders. © 2011 WIT Press.