Examples of temporary urbanism around the city include the Washington Trapeze School and Kastles Tennis at the City Center site, the yearly Artomatic event and and outdoor event area coined the Bullpen outside Nationals Park.O'Connell points out that developers are often luke warm to the idea of temporary uses as they are concerned that when the time for development does arrive the public will object to displacement of the temporary amenity.
I support the concept of temporary urbanism. When the stop gap for every stalled development is a parking lot it stifles livability. The district has made strides in this regard under Tregoning's tenure but other cities show that much more is possible. Portland Oregon not only has pioneered the modern streetcar line but also prominently features temporary urbanism in the form of a vibrant downtown food cart scene. The perimeter of most downtown surface parking lots in Portland are lined with food carts (over 400!) that offer diverse and cheap dining options including Bosnian pitas, Venezuelan Arepas, Deep Fried Double Dogs, Poutine, Vegan options, and much, much more... This leads blocks with parking lots to become hubs of activity rather than barren wastelands.
A 555 Mass resident send in a tip that a successful venture in Austin called the South Austin Trailer Park and Eatery would be a great idea for temporary urbanism. It merges the foodcart concept of Portland with picnic tables and kid friendly attractions.
