Assessment of functional facilities towards regeneration mode identification in old residential areas: A case study of Shanghai, China

There are currently a substantial number of old residential areas in super-large and mega cities in the world that need to be updated and renovated. Existing research has overlooked the spatial interactions and intrinsic connections between facilities and residential areas. Based on a two-dimensional evaluation framework integrating facility balance and spatial attractiveness, this study evaluates the functional facilities around the old residential areas and identifies the urban regeneration modes in central districts of Shanghai, China. The spatial distribution and aggregation patterns of old residential areas are examined using kernel density estimation. The balance and diversity of the functional facilities around old residential areas are investigated using the equilibrium model based on information entropy. The attractiveness of the functional facilities around old residential areas is analyzed using the gravity model. Finally, appropriate urban regeneration modes of the old residential areas are identified using spatial clustering analysis. It is shown that the old residential areas exhibit a spatiotemporal distribution pattern characterized by high central stock and large peripheral increment. A significant paradox of high facility balance but low spatial attractiveness is widely observed in the central districts. Three differentiated regeneration modes: quality improvement (38.61%), functional optimization (10.14%), and structural adjustment (51.25%) are proposed. This study can offer important insights for sustainable high-density cities worldwide.