A "meanwhile use" describes a situation where a site is utilised for a duration of time before it is turned into a more permanent end state, taking advantage of a short window of opportunity.

Meanwhile interventions are tactical and slot into wider strategies of planned change. They can help in shaping positive urban transformation. We evidence the transitional nature of meanwhile uses within urban development, where its primary purpose is to deliver benefits to the community through predominantly social outcomes as well as economic and environmental. It is not exclusive of its users but inclusive of social need; it delivers social value, informs longer-term development and drives a new vision of city making (ARUP, 2020). Not all temporary uses are meanwhile: meanwhile uses take advantage of a window of opportunity on a site, before and after another use. And not all meanwhile uses are short term. Some meanwhile uses are offered long leases, for instance in regeneration projects spanning decades. (Source: Centre for London , 2018).