Commercial temporary use of space as a tool of creating modern housing environment – threats and opportunities

Temporary use of space is a strategy of activating the space of abandoned buildings or urban wasteland areas via a variety of bottom-up and top-down initiatives proposed by local communities, municipal authorities and developers. Implemented as a preliminary stage of a target investment project, temporary use of space is intended to spark the interest of the inhabitants and create an attractive image for potential clients. In the area of Poznan, it is a pioneering strategy, that has yet not been thoroughly studied in the Polish context. The strategy entails both positive and negative phenomena. It is the intention of this article to critically analyse a case study of Koszary Kultury [Arts & Culture Baraques] in comparison to a similar initiative in Vienna, i.e. CREAU project. Comparative analysis, combined with a bibliographic query of literature and a site visit, has enabled us to identify opportunities and threats of temporary use of space and to work up recommendations how to create friendly and inclusive residential housing via revitalisation activities.