Demolishing is not a strategy: Rethinking urban renewal beyond growth in Grenoble, France

Demolition has long dominated urban renewal practice, frequently framed as the only solution to housing degradation, but driven by political and economic agendas focused on growth rather than meeting residents’ needs. In France, the national programmes for urban renewal have institutionalised demolition through strong financial incentives, reinforcing neoliberal urban competitiveness and the pursuit of social mix. This paper examines how such logics persist within contemporary renewal programmes and how local actors seek to challenge them. Based on empirical insights from the Villeneuve district in Grenoble, it analyses the tensions between national frameworks promoting demolition and local ambitions to prioritise rehabilitation, ecological responsibility and citizen participation. While political change and mobilisation enabled a partial shift away from demolition, structural dependencies – financial, institutional and ideological – continue to constrain alternatives. This article argues that moving beyond demolition-centred renewal requires a reform of national funding and evaluation frameworks, enabling practices of repair, reuse and democratic co-production. Such an approach would not only mitigate environmental and social costs but also contribute to reframing urban policy within a post-growth paradigm beyond demolition.