The “Linz 21” project was an ambitious attempt to describe future development paths for the Austrian city of Linz. Its purpose was to enable active design of the city’s future in the 21st century, cognizant of the manifold challenges the municipality now faces. The process was designed for public participation. Several exploratory scenarios were developed in the period from 2002 to 2004. Those scenarios depicted the effects of various action alternatives and supported active and successful strategy development.