Culture and collaboration in Cologne’s meanwhile spaces

Like many European cities, Cologne’s city centre is undergoing major change due to shifting retail patterns and their impact on central urban spaces. Launched in 2024, an innovative research project will transform three vacant retail units into vibrant meanwhile spaces through cultural participation. A collaboration between Cultural Space Management and TH Köln University, the project explores how culture can drive city centre revival by developing mixed-use spaces.

This project specifically targets the area around Schildergasse and Hohe Straße, testing cultural uses as a catalyst for urban transformation. The initiative aims to activate new user groups, reduce vacancy rates, increase foot traffic beyond retail hours, and create usage models promoting social diversity.

Developing meanwhile spaces with communities

In December 2024 and January 2025, Master’s students from the Faculty of Architecture developed initial concepts for three meanwhile spaces. These proposals were presented and discussed on-site, gathering feedback from potential users regarding feasibility, risks, and opportunities. This dialogue-centered approach ensured that activation strategies reflected community needs and aspirations.

Using cultural participation to test concepts

During the 2025 summer semester, Bachelor students will curate and plan cultural pop-up formats as part of their coursework, supported by arts and culture sector experts. These plans include public-facing interventions such as exhibitions and discussion events, simulating active use of the selected spaces and testing their potential for sustained cultural participation.

Activating meanwhile spaces with culture

In August 2025, a week-long Summer School will bring together interdisciplinary students to finalise and implement temporary transformations at designated sites. Cultural practitioners will activate these meanwhile spaces through performances, installations, and events – bringing temporary architectural interventions into the public realm and emphasising connections between indoor and outdoor urban spaces.

Measuring impact

The project employs a real-world laboratory methodology, where vacant commercial spaces are temporarily repurposed over several months to test various cultural uses. The diversity of spatial typologies is intentional, reflecting the varied character of Cologne’s city centre and allowing for exploration of different interim-use scenarios. Fundamentally, the project is asking to what extent can culture drive city centre revival.

Comprehensive documentation and analysis by the TH Köln and City of Cologne teams will evaluate the effectiveness of meanwhile spaces and cultural participation as catalysts for long-term urban transformation. Through this innovative approach to vacant space activation, Cologne demonstrates how culture can be positioned as a driver for city centre revival, creating new possibilities for urban spaces in transition.