Typology-driven framework for revitalizing urban leftover spaces: Systematic review of practices and future research directions

The rapid pace of urbanization has resulted in many leftover spaces in cities globally. These spaces come in various types and present shortcomings on multiple facets, which simultaneously provide unique advantages for diverse social groups for different activities and purposes. To harness these spaces’ potential and reinforce citizens’ rights to the city, urban planners have proposed several revitalization strategies. This study performs a systematic literature review of 114 peer-reviewed articles, sourced from prominent academic databases, focusing on “leftover space” and “residual space” as primary search terms. We identified four common types of leftover space based on their value deficiencies, thereby creating a framework for revitalization. First, locational leftover spaces can benefit from landscape enhancements. Second, heritage leftover spaces may be revitalized through land remediation and the adaptive reuse of industrial heritage. Third, morphological leftover spaces can be optimized by planning adjustments creating public spaces. Lastly, functional leftover spaces can be energized through place-making initiatives promoting community involvement. This research aligns various leftover spaces with revitalization strategies on policy, funding, schemes, and maintenance, thereby providing insights for future research and guides evidence-based planning practices in the long run. • Typical leftover spaces include vast wilderness, brownfields, space left over after planning, and undefined built spaces. • Proposes a typology of leftover space based on spatial deficiencies: locational, heritage, morphological, and functional. • Aligns typologies with four revitalization modes and nine revitalization strategies. • Discusses global applicability, policy, and funding implications of each revitalization framework.