A trip to Rome on Wednesday 28 December for the general secretary of the Municipality of Piacenza, Luca Canessa, the councilor and manager of urban planning, Adriana Fantini and Massimo Sandoni. Destination, the Ministry of Infrastructure, for a meeting aimed at defining the complex process of the redevelopment plan of the former Manifattura Tabacchi site, agreeing in particular on the changes that will allow the Pinqua project to be adapted to the requirements set by the Pnrr.
In fact, the Tarasconi Council intends to implement some changes with respect to the original project, first of all by providing for the distribution of the new buildings along the perimeter of the intervention area, in order to allocate the central area to the creation of a large equipped public urban park of approximately 15,000 m2. In addition, part of the social housing sector will be allocated to student accommodation, with the aim of responding to the growing need for university students to live in.
Other changes concern, however, the project of the lower secondary school: not only will there be a further concentration of the built volume – thus increasing the free space to be allocated to an area equipped for educational vegetable gardens, sporting activities and free play – but all The extension of the gymnasium is also planned inside the new school complex to insert a playing field of suitable size for competitive activity, so as to make it usable also for citizens to practice sports or other activities during extra-school hours.
«Our proposals have received positive feedback from the Ministry’s mission unit», underlines councilor Fantini, who adds: «We now have intense work ahead of us, to align the procedures envisaged by the first loan with the strict rules introduced from the Pnrr».
The timetable envisages that the contract will be awarded by the end of August 2023, setting the end of the works for March 2026. The project is of a high standard, curated by the group led by architects Giancarlo Floridi and Angelo Lunati of Onsitestudio, teachers at the Politecnico di Milano and Harvard GSD, which was entrusted, in recent months, with the creation of the Beic, the new European library of information and culture in the Porta Vittoria area, in Milan. The project is the result of a national invitational competition organized by Prelios spa.
In general, adds councilor Fantini, «the redevelopment of the former Manifattura Tabacchi is an extraordinary opportunity to enhance and grow the architectural culture of Piacenza, focusing attention on contemporary architecture of which Italy is the best forge of talents in the world, so that it can be the tool that not only gives a new face to the places we love, but makes them increasingly accessible».