Intermediary urban spaces – temporary uses, occupations of vacant land, and informal appropriations – become increasingly relevant in urban developments across European cities. They act as flexible, adaptive nodes within the urban fabric and carry the potential to foster social innovation. Yet, their activation poses complex questions of public security. On one hand, interim spaces support safety by encouraging informal monitoring and creating social presence. On another, their temporary status, ambiguous governance and informality poses specific challenges for policing, safety and control. A set of studies available both in English and German takes stock of the relevant scholarly and practitioner knowledge. They summarize existing findings, identify lacunas and shortcomings, and chart ways ahead for the creation of a more holistic body of knowledge centering on the security politics of interim urban spaces.

Gallery: Typology of interim urban spaces (excerpt)

Betschart, Thomas; Hagmann, Jonas (2025). Safeguarding interim urban spaces: the scholarly state of the art. Basel: Kantons- und Stadtentwicklung Basel-Stadt, 29p. PDF/ URL

Betschart, Thomas; Hagmann, Jonas (2025). Safeguarding interim urban space: a review of practitioner knowledge. Basel: Kantons- und Stadtentwicklung Basel-Stadt, 24p. PDF / URL

Betschart, Thomas; Hagmann, Jonas (2025). Die Gestaltung von sicheren Zwischennutzungen: Ein Überblick der wissenschaftlichen Literatur. Basel: Kantons- und Stadtentwicklung Basel-Stadt, 32p. PDF / URL

Betschart, Thomas; Hagmann, Jonas (2025). Sichere Zwischennutzungen gestalten. Ein Überblick über das Wissen aus der Praxis. Basel: Kantons- und Stadtentwicklung Basel-Stadt, 24p. PDF / URL