Competition: second place – Judges comments:
The authors of the project consider the principal scope of the competition to be the creation of a multimodal centre for Bolzano. This entails an effort for the research for a contemporary architecture which will fit into the context of a long term town planning approach. Of equal importance for the planners are the dialog and the relationship between the buildings and the interconnected public spaces and green areas. Innovative, modern, sustainable and ecological solutions are aimed at integrating the Piani district within the town planning context of the city and at eliminating the barrier effect represented by the existing railway line. In the residential area towards the North, along via Renon (which becomes a green boulevard), the construction of open block buildings with internal courtyards (up to 5 floors) is proposed. The residential area towards the East is characterised by “terraced step row houses” and residential buildings with a maximum of 4 floors. It is planned that the Southern part of the area, which is shadier, shall be dedicated mainly to offices, commercial activities, sporting facilities and areas suitable for public events. The ecological project envisages a surface water draining system for the areas of new construction. The objective is to maintain the surface water on the ground, as long as possible by means of retention basins within the stratum of gravel, intended to act as underground biotopes.