Creative togetherness: from vintage store to garden café

Symposium discusses interim use as an opportunity for urban development

How can (inner) cities remain attractive? How can unused spaces and stores be used sensibly and sustainably? And what regional characteristics play a role? These and other exciting questions were explored by regional and national experts at the second "Interim Use Conference" at TRAFO in Jena yesterday. Around 35 participants discussed how such temporary use of certain areas can have positive effects on the district. The conference was organized by the BLANK Agency for Temporary Use in cooperation with the Jena Economic Development Agency and with the support of the Erfurt-Jena-Weimar Impulse Region.

A wide variety of commercial and non-commercial formats can be realized with the help of temporary use: PopUp stores, studios, workshops, exhibition spaces, cultural and meeting places, cafés and many more. Enabling these different forms of temporary use is a particular concern for Jena's mayor and head of urban development, Christian Gerlitz:

"With temporary use of spaces or commercial units, creative processes and participation arise in unusual places. In this way, we strengthen joint innovative ideas from a wide variety of people who come together in these places." According to Gerlitz, these exchanges and encounters make for a profitable coexistence.

The BLANK Agency for Interim Use is an institution that facilitates this togetherness at various locations in Jena. For director Katrin Hitziggrad, who also moderated the symposium, interim use primarily creates free spaces for experimentation:

"A wide variety of actors from interdisciplinary fields come together and develop new projects and business ideas. Particularly in art and culture, but also in business and social contexts - the boundaries are blurring and that is also the aim of this exchange." At the same time, according to Hitziggrad, a variety of interim uses lead to a higher quality of stay in the area - because people don't just go into the city to stroll or store, but also to meet other people and discover new things. "Although we have little structural vacancy in Jena, there is still untapped potential or long-term vacant premises that can be put back to use with temporary solutions," says Hitziggrad.

Various conference participants reported on the specific challenges of some of these "experimental spaces". For example, Jena entrepreneur Julian Gimper, owner of the vintage store Soyuz in Bachstraße, explained his economic prototyping approach. Whether a business idea is economically viable can be tested in a "test run", so to speak, without the need for long-term rental agreements or extensive investments.

Ronny Lessau from KreativTankstelle GmbH described how the "WirGarten" was created from a brownfield site in the north of Erfurt's old town - a cross-generational and intercultural community garden in which "people planted, built and celebrated together". The project was funded by admission to concerts and cultural events as well as proceeds from drinks. In future, the "WirQuartier", a new residential area with a kindergarten, age-appropriate housing and modern infrastructure, will be built on the site. The WirGarten concept has since enjoyed a number of follow-up projects. In 2020, the team reactivated the Erfurt city garden and took part in the Federal Garden Show on the Petersberg in 2021. Another interim use project will be implemented there in the summer.

Massif Central Frankfurt a.M. is also due to relocate soon. The founders Jule Parulewski, Sven Seipp and Florian Jöckel explained the interim use concept of an old print shop, which has been home to a bicycle repair shop, a café, a bar and a creative hub for two years. The result is a place for creative development and exchange. However, new space will need to be found from 2023.

According to Patrick Werner from the Jena Economic Development Agency, this is a particular challenge:

"Interim use projects live above all through committed people. However, projects in which a lot of passion and time are invested can only be implemented for a limited time, at least in the same location." Then it's time to move on with a great idea and look for a new place to stay. In a city like Jena with a vacancy rate of less than three percent in the commercial sector, this is often no easy task, says Werner. "Nevertheless, great business ideas and collaborations can develop from these interim use concepts, which greatly enrich a district."

In this context, the Jena Cultural Advisory Service has played an important supporting role for associations, initiatives and cultural players in Jena since 2014. Its head, Xenia Reich-Hemmerich, wants to work together with the Department of Urban Development, JenaKultur and the Interim Use Agency to develop strategies on how civil society projects can be given a reliable long-term perspective. Ideally, this exchange of ideas could also lead to a creative quarter for Jena, says the cultural consultant:

"Art and culture in particular need stable structures and an open, targeted exchange. Then processes and projects can flourish and blossom, making Jena even more colorful and diverse."