Temporary Urbanism

Erika Mayer // University of Florida

April 2013
During these rough economic times, cities and towns across the globe are dotted with
vacant lots, unfinished projects developers have pulled out of, projects on hold for
yearsEven cities with high land value, such as New York, have empty parcels- just
waiting, leaving a void in the urban fabric of neighborhoods, an eye sore to those who
see it on a daily basis. But what if something could fill that void? Even if it was only
temporary until more concrete plans were set in motion? What if you could turn that void
into a pop-up park, an impromptu farmers market, an art show, installation, a caf, a
music venue? Temporary urbanism is the exciting notion that we dont have to live with
these voids, they can be filled, even if just temporarily. We dont have to wait for
developers to come in with money; we dont have to depend on bureaucratic processes
to shape our cities. It is possible to re-stitch the fabric of our communities and fulfill the
immediate needs and desires of our neighborhoods. With temporary urbanism gaining
traction in cities around the country, what seemed like a far reach years ago is now a
possibility.
Temporary urbanism goes by many names including, tactical urbanism, temporary use,
the lighter, quicker, cheaper movement (LQC), temporiums, and guerilla urbanism-- it is
the temporary use of vacant structures or underused land that has no eminent
development plans. (Lehtovuori, p. 2) This concise definition encompasses a wide range
of variation in form- from actions such as art or musical performances to concrete
expressions such as pop-up retail shops. It is incremental development and change
from the bottom up that is community- driven and focused. (Ash)
Temporary urbanism goes beyond exhorting what should be done. It focuses on
what CAN be done by creating tangibleif temporaryalternatives to the statusquo. The temporary nature of these transformations enable citizens to think
outside the block and use the spaces as testing grounds for new ideas about
urban living. In the process, it encourages cities to move beyond developers
empty lots (and promises) and engage residents about their citys future.
(Artibise)

Historically speaking, temporary urbanism has been around for sometime, from
carnivals and artist squatters, to night vendors and street hawkers. (McKone) People
have been organically shaping their spaces from the bottom up for a while now.
Medieval cities were great examples of people shaping their spaces based on what they
needed and with the resources they had available, little by little, organically. In the same
way, temporary urbanism offers communities a way to shape their neighborhoods based
on what they need and with the resources available to them- to foster the vernacular
landscape unique to their communities.
There are many benefits to temporary use. It creates an opportunity to change the
perception of a neighborhood that may have been written off- capturing the zeitgeist of a
particular community in that moment and bringing out its unique character. It can break
up the homogeneity of an area, injecting creativity and life into a space, while bringing
the public together with community-led organizing. This activation of space can in turn
attract people and capital from other areas, bringing attention and possibly interest in
living there or investing there. This is a slow process of course, but one that can be kickstarted by exciting and imaginative temporary use. (Depillis)
Additionally, temporary urbanism can provide affordable rent for start-up companies
and non-profits that normally cannot afford big overhead in the early stages of inception.
This creates all types of possibilities for ideas that would normally not have enough
money or traction to take off. It can act as an incubator for innovation in its early stages
as well as further along in the development process. This whole process benefits the
landlords of vacant lots and buildings as well, providing income they otherwise wouldnt
have that could go towards paying any maintenance fees or taxes on the property. In
turn, high exposure to the site may also spark long term interest to develop or lease. The
city stands to gain something in eliminating the eye-sores that unused spaces can
sometimes be, along with the crime that comes with it. (Lehtovuori, p. 7-8) Additionally,
these spaces can act as an arena to test different ideas- allowing cities to see what
works where. It can also act as an indicator for developers, allowing them to read the
results of temporary uses in determining immediate needs of the community and to
measure the success of different ventures. (Arieff, Time to Rethink Temporary)

Given the down economy and with some cities exhibiting up to 15% vacancy rates,
now is as good a time as any for a concept like temporary urbanism to take off. It is low,
cost, experimental, and ephemeral. (Newcombe) According to Mike Lyden, who
authored the online Tactical Urbanism manuals 1 & 2- three elements set the perfect
stage for temporary urbanism. The first was the recession, which forced people to get
creative with minimal budgets and take spaces into their own hands as they saw city
budgets dwindle and development dry up. Second, was shifting demographics- with
neighborhoods changing and gentrifying, people began moving into areas with
affordable rent, they started to make changes to their streets and make improvements to
the neighborhood. Finally, the internet and social media have been a game changerfacilitating the communication of the idea of temporary urbanism, along with project
examples, tips, and minfestos such as Lydens which saw 10,000 downloads in the first
2 months. (Lyden, p. v-2) (Arieff, Time to Rethink Temporary)
The potential for temporary use varies from place to place, depending on certain
conditions. Is there already an existing sense of place that can be built on, or is it more
homogenous? Is there trust between the tenant and landlord? What level of creative
freedom is allowed at the site? How accessible is the space from other parts of the city?
All these questions shape the possibilities of use and the outcome. Projects can be
ephemeral- as in an art installation, or they may be recurrent - like in a weekly outdoor
movie night, they may even change from one location to another, the way a pop-up retail
shop might jump from city to city. In Temporary Uses As a Means of Experimental Urban
Planning Panu Lehtovuori identifies three types of special conditions where temporary
uses take place, shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Temporary uses typology: conditions and goals

In urban central areas where use is defined and development is stable, temporary use
may find purpose in adding character to otherwise stale city centers that usually house
offices and municipal buildings. Under-used areas such as left over industrial
landscapes or harbors can benefit from the place-making quality of temporary projects,
injecting life and initiating the place as a viable option for living and visiting. Areas losing
significance- for example, when an industry moves out of town- can use temporary
urbanism to reinvigorate local business by attracting people into the area. It can also
serve to redefine and rebrand the sense of place. One theory Lehtovuori references
when trying to analyze where temporary use will most likely take place is Neil Smiths
rent gap theory, which can be characterized as the gap between the value of a site and
its potential value. When this gap is high, gentrification occurs as investors and
developers move in. It is in the moment before gentrification where temporary urbanism
may take place. (Spirkoska) (Lehtovuori, p. 8-13)

Another graphic representation found in Mike Lydons Tactical Urbanism, expertly

depicts the different types based on the actors and whether they were grass roots or
authorized by the city- see Table 2. (Lydon, p. 7) One may note that as you move further
to the sanctioned projects, they tend to move further away from local communities and
individuals.

Table 2.

When it comes to policy, many cities across the country are beginning to adopt
measures that would allow and facilitate temporary uses. It is arguable that bringing
bureaucracy, paperwork, and regulation into something like this, conflicts with the fragile,
spontaneous feel of temporary urbanism. It also raises questions- would regulation and
an eagerness to enliven empty lots systematically make the whole process mechanical
and prescribed? The perks of involving the city, however include having the option of
using city-owned land as well as more money for project startup if the city is willing to
invest or offer grants. In the article, The Contradictions of Regulating Pop-up Spaces,
Jonna McKone identifies Washington DC as one of the many cities adopting temporaryfriendly initiatives with its creation of the Temporary Urbanism Initiative. She points out,
it will be interesting to see how the city government expands the temporary
urbanism programneighborhoods on the cusp of gentrification are likely to see

government intervention that encourages art and business as top-down

gentrification. Others might see these projects as interventions that take away
ownership from something that should be fluid and community-driven. (McKone)
Temporary urbanism should be seen as a shift from the traditional model of top-down
planning to a more adaptable, and responsive form. It should be utilized as an
opportunity to glean what works in spaces, what people need, and what they are asking
for. With more and more cities adopting temporary use approaches, the future looks
bright, especially for empty lots.

Works Cited
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