2' min read
2' min read
After years of unsuccessful attempts, this time could be the right one to relaunch Turin's former Manifattura Tabacchi. In the first six months of 2025, work will begin on demolishing the structures owned by the state property to start construction of the buildings that will house a new archival and cultural centre for the city. The renovation of the structure, which is located in the Turin North area, specifically in Regio Parco, will bring a series of possible benefits to the entire area. The project in fact promises to transform the old factory into an innovative and sustainable space, with study centres and a University Pole.
The job was awarded to the team consisting of professionals from Eutropia Architettura and Pinifarina Architecture with Weber Architects, joined by an interdisciplinary group including Paisà Landscape. They will elaborate the technical-economic feasibility project within 90 days of the assignment, while the first design level of Lot 1 of the archive centre will be completed by the first quarter of 2025. "The design vision encompasses the intuition of establishing a dialogue between environmental and landscape components, between the new buildings and the legacy of historical artefacts," says Luca Barontini, co-founder of Eutropia Architettura. "In that place suspended between the curves of the river and the straight lines of Corso Regio Parco, the city finds a new dimension to attract people, ideas, culture and economy. In short, to trigger urban regeneration dynamics with a high social impact," emphasises Giovanni De Niederhäusern, Senior Vice President of Pininfarina Architecture.
The tracks of the old railway junction draw the lines along which the entire project unfolds, from the Central Square, where the new Archives will be located, to the Track Square, the Water Court and the Studentate Square, and then on to the Garden on the rediscovered canal, the Education Forest and various areas equipped for outdoor activities, including the Sports Garden and the Children's Tree Library. The two new Archive complexes, the heart of the entire project, will retain a distinct industrial character. The covered space between the two archives has also been conceived as a place for aggregation and events, favouring the use of public space and the new urban square. The project also intends to create a connection between the urban system and the surrounding natural areas - the Po, the parks and the nearby nature reserves - and this real 'reconnection' between the city and the park takes place by enhancing elements of historical memory and introducing a new network of paths immersed in the green of the widespread park.
