Raumsuchen

Raumsuchen is a concept in urban planning and architecture that describes the proactive search for usable spaces within cities. The term combines the German words Raum (space) and suchen (to search) to denote a systematic approach to identifying underused, vacant, or non-residential areas that could be repurposed for housing, culture, commerce, or community services. Rather than waiting for large-scale redevelopment, Raumsuchen emphasizes flexibility, temporary uses, and community involvement as ways to address urban density and changing needs.

Historically linked to debates about vacant property and emergent forms of temporary urbanism, Raumsuchen gained traction in European cities in the late 20th and early 21st centuries as a complement to formal planning. Practice often involves rapid site inventories, legal and regulatory analysis, and collaborative processes with residents, artists, entrepreneurs, and local organizations.

Typical methods include GIS-based vacancy mapping, field surveys, open calls for proposals, and pilots such as pop-up shops, cultural programs, or short-term housing. Outcomes can range from temporary occupancy agreements to longer-term conversions, with lessons feeding broader policy debates.

Benefits include increased use of underutilized space, support for affordable housing and local culture, and faster experimentation. Challenges encompass ownership and safety concerns, regulatory barriers, funding, and ensuring community consent and equity in who benefits.

Raumsuchen is related to concepts such as temporary urbanism, placemaking, and urban acupuncture, and is used to inform adaptive, bottom-up responses to urban vacancy and evolving community needs.