Provisional Governance: How Temporary Projects Reshape Cities
Accessibility Arts & Culture Diversity, Inclusion & Equity Economic Development Engagement Parks & Public SpaceSummary
This ArchDaily article examines the evolution of temporary projects from genuine experimental interventions into durable mechanisms of contemporary city-making and provides an interesting perspective on how they can encode existing power relations. As provisional projects are often viewed as low risk, flexible, and adaptable, they may reduce public resistance, circumvent lengthy and complex planning, permitting and approvals, and allow governments and developers to manage underutilized land while advancing long-term agendas. Despite the promise of impermanence, these projects may also systematically reshape urban landscapes, leaving long-lasting social, economic, and spatial impacts. As a result, temporality has become a form of governing strategy (“an institutional Trojan Horse”) that prioritizes administrative agility over democratic accountability. Temporary urbanism also risks evolving into a tool to legitimize predetermined outcomes. The article ultimately calls for greater awareness of how temporary projects systematically embed power, define who belongs, and determine the future usage of the space under the guise of flexibility and experimentation.