The meanwhile lease: enabling temporary community use of vacant property
Meanwhile Foundation
Meanwhile Foundation (UK)
Urban Farm DB summary
The 'meanwhile lease' lets landlords grant short-term use to voluntary groups while keeping ownership and the right to recover the site; an intermediary provides standard contracts and insurance to make interim use legal and smooth.
Key points
- 1The 'meanwhile lease' is a mechanism for enabling temporary community use of vacant properties.
- 2Landlords can grant short-term access to voluntary groups while retaining full ownership and future recovery rights.
- 3Intermediary organizations play a crucial role by providing standardized contracts and insurance.
- 4This framework ensures that interim uses are legally sound and operationally smooth.
- 5It facilitates the productive activation of dormant urban spaces for community benefit.
Abstract and stored text
AI-generated summaryThis paper from the Meanwhile Foundation (2013) introduces the concept of a 'meanwhile lease' as a policy mechanism to enable temporary community use of vacant properties. It outlines how landlords can grant short-term access to voluntary groups while retaining full ownership and future recovery rights. The framework emphasizes the role of intermediary organizations, which provide essential services such as standardized contracts and insurance. This support ensures that interim uses are legally sound and operationally smooth, facilitating the productive activation of otherwise dormant urban spaces for community benefit.
This is an AI synthesis from the stored record, not the original abstract. Check the original before quoting.
Why it matters for urban farming
For citizen-driven urban farming, the 'meanwhile lease' offers a vital pathway to access land. Many urban farming initiatives struggle to find suitable plots, and vacant properties represent a significant untapped resource. This mechanism allows urban farmers to utilize dormant land for cultivation on a temporary basis, reducing the long-term commitment risk for landowners while providing a structured, legally sound framework for community groups. The involvement of intermediary organizations can simplify the process, offering standard contracts and insurance, thereby empowering citizens to establish and operate urban farms in otherwise unused urban spaces.