Standby Squares

Each spring, Reykjavík City seeks creative and enthusiastic individuals or groups to adopt public spaces in the city. The project typically runs from May to September each year and aims to create more vibrant squares in a more enjoyable city.
Application deadline is April 1, 2025.
Past projects
Why?
The Standby Squares project has been transforming city squares and public spaces since 2011. The project focuses on bringing spaces to life and reimagining them through temporary solutions. The project aims to create more engaging spaces, celebrate unexpected possibilities, and provide a platform for bold urban environment experiments. Spaces are assigned to groups and individuals who want to experiment with bringing them to life.
This year's theme is life in the forest. Reykjavík is rich in natural amenities. Lakes, valleys, coves, hillsides, moors and especially forests all offer city residents opportunities for physical and mental rejuvenation. Good accessibility and diverse facilities in our recreational paradises help make this possible. Do you have an innovative forest-themed idea?
Discovering the possibilities
Standby Squares is fundamentally a planning tool designed to promote sustainable development, increase diverse public use of spaces, and help residents, businesses and other stakeholders recognize each area's potential.
The project also supports goals outlined in the Reykjavík Municipal Plan 2040 for environmentally friendly neighborhoods and sustainable transportation.

What are standby projects?
Standby projects allow cities to test temporary initiatives and explore creative ideas without major investments, often yielding unexpected outcomes that would have been difficult to predict.
Cities worldwide are embracing this approach, which sometimes leads to permanent improvements.

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Do you have an idea or want more information?
Get in touch by sending an email to gongugotur@reykjavik.is