Adaptive reuse process of the Historic Urban Landscape post-Covid-19. The potential of the inner areas for a “new normal”

Abstract

<p class="Abstracttext-VITRUVIOCxSpFirst">Often in the past, the great disasters (environmental calamities, earthquakes, epidemics) activated unexpressed energies, triggering transformations of the built environment, able to give rise unexpected conditions of economic, cultural and social development. The fragility of settlement systems in the face of unexpected threats brings out the need for a new planning, changing our gaze on the city.</p><p class="Abstracttext-VITRUVIOCxSpMiddle">The new framework of needs drawn by the pandemic and the renewed sensitivity towards the combination of health – sustainability, rekindle the spotlight on inner areas. These emerged as "reservoirs of resilience", areas to look at, in order to reach an eco-systemic balance.</p><p class="Abstracttext-VITRUVIOCxSpMiddle">The aim of the paper is to return an experience of adaptive reuse of the Historical Urban Landscape in an inner area of Southern Italy, where the needs of health and safety of the community are integrated with the transmission of the built heritage to future generations. The goal is the promotion of inclusive prosperity scenarios, towards the so-called "new normality".</p><p class="Abstracttext-VITRUVIOCxSpLast">Starting from an in-depth literature review on the cases of pandemics in history and the strategies implemented, the research identifies health security requirements at the scale of the Historical Urban Landscape and design solutions aimed at reactivating lost synergies between communities and places.</p>

A Health Issue in Urban Politics After the Pandemic COVID-19 Outbreak

“…Pinto et al [25] highlight issues related to monitoring the health status of urban residents in a historical perspective. According to the authors, the emphasis should be on urban health security requirements, as well as on design solutions to restore lost synergies between communities and places.…”

“…Urban resilience is very often mentioned in this context [70,71]. However, it is cogently noted that epidemics were known in antiquity, so the problem is universal and the future urban organization should use proven experiences from the past [25]. Of course, they should be modi ed given the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic and advances in technology.…”

Inland Areas, Protected Natural Areas and Sustainable Development

“…A balance must exist between the environmental conditions of protected areas and the needs of tourism development. European indications also point towards an integrated approach that is able to meet the needs of protecting the natural environment, increasing tourist flows and managing the flow of new inhabitants who choose to live in protected areas [12].…”

An Empirical Analysis of Driving Factors and Policy Enablers of Heritage Adaptive Reuse within the Circular Economy Framework

“…While the real estate market is introduced as an investment attracting factor, access to affordable housing is also recognized as a crucial social driver promoting social cohesion [60]. The Covid-19 pandemic has also accelerated transitions in the real estate market, calling for actions and strategies that take into account public and urban health considerations [64]. In addition, sense of belonging in community, wellbeing and quality of life are also listed as social driving factors [52,62].…”

“…Reduction in the use of resources, material and building costs, energy consumption and material waste also complement these physical factors from an environmental and circularity perspective [55,70,72]. The localization of the regenerated building and area in terms of their proximity to natural environments, green areas and public spaces, as well as to main transportation nodes, is also acknowledged to stimulate reuse processes [50,61,64]. Aiming for a more sustainable building/urban area that is energy efficient is also recognized as an environmental driver.…”