Schools and cities: spaces for solutions

To contain the pandemic, schools of all types and levels have been closed in Italy from 28 February until the end of the school year. In other European countries, the solutions were different and provided for faster reopening times. During the spring and summer of 2020, municipal administrations supported schools in organizing the resumption of activities, scheduled for 14 September. This contribution presents some considerations based on the support work to Milan and Bergamo's municipal administrations, carried out by a research group composed of urban planners, architects, and management engineers. These surveys helped to focus on some criticalities within the public domain in defining policies and emergency governance as far as school spaces are concerned.