Previous state
In Bucharest, Romania, where homelessness is a critical problem, vulnerable people seek safety and resources in the central areas of the city. However, the municipal social services are frequently located on the outskirts and not everyone has access to them. One essential need of homeless people is having somewhere safe to leave their belongings. Without this, they feel even more vulnerable.
The place chosen for the intervention is an abandoned lot in the city centre, slightly higher than pavement level, and in an area with a lot of pedestrian and vehicular traffic. The space had been left empty after buildings were demolished in the 1980s under the communist regime.
Aim of the intervention
The “Space for Solidarity” project has reclaimed an abandoned vacant lot in the city centre to respond to the needs of homeless people. The idea was to provide modular storage units, complete with electricity, benches, tables, and spaces for community use, including a sports area. The project is managed by local institutions and NGOs which, integrated into the Bucharest social services, offer daily support to homeless people. Designed as a pilot project, this model can be applied in other places and there are plans to extend it to other central locations in the city.
Description
Designed to offer a wide range of community services, the structure is modular and multifunctional. It includes storage units with twenty small individual lockers equipped with electricity supplied by photovoltaic solar panels. With a view to mobility and community use, it has benches and tables of different heights, changing spaces, donation points, and a sports zone that includes parking places for bicycles. Moreover, the modular structure is totally dismountable so the installation can easily be moved to other places and reproduced in accordance with needs.
Assessment
This space has become an inclusive community area, benefitting homeless people and the neighbourhood in general. Since it is located opposite a tram stop, it can also be used as shelter from sun or rain, and as a social meeting point. Moreover, it has served as a laboratory for testing new ways of dealing with situations of crisis. The project makes precarious living conditions visible while also challenging urban regulations that exclude vulnerable groups, and upholding the right to an inclusive city. The “Space for Solidarity” presents a model based on care and conviviality with the potential to transform the way urban policies are conceived in Bucharest.
[Last update: 30/03/2026]
