The uncommonness of urban commons in Central and Eastern European countries

Abstract

This paper looks at the uncommonness of open space Urban Commons, i.e., squares, playgrounds, plazas, etc., in Central and Eastern European Countries. Such spaces are complex urban commons in terms of governance and are often contested in the frame of urbanisation and market-led processes of city-making, as well as for what they represent as constructs of values and identity. The four open space Urban Commons examples (respectively in Tirana, Podgorica, Gdansk and Moscow) analysed in this paper showcase successes and failures of [co-]governance, which reflect the varying development context in each country, the respective local governments’ roles, and the different pathways that citizens have taken towards city space [re]appropriation in the frame of post-socialism and neoliberalism.