Replacement of the urban structure. Project of Viserba’s waterfront

Abstract

Nowadays many seaside towns, economically based on marine tourism, need operations to reinvent and recovery their own image and to define a new strategy of urban development. The presence of the sea is of primary importance and it should be considered not only as an economic resource, but mainly as a strong element of identity that must interact with the urban landscape.
The project of Viserba’s waterfront faces these issues and it tries to answer them through a unique urban plan. The renewal of the area comes through the replacement of large parts of urban fabric, characterized by the high density of construction and by a low architectural quality. The aim of the urban regeneration process of the Viserba’s seafront is to recreate the connection between the city and its marine environment and try to keep the whole urban system in balance from architectural, cultural, economic and social viewpoints. The main concept of the project is based on the theme of water that generates the idea of a waterfront with new tourist facilities oriented toward the sea and that becomes the common thread that links them together. The cohesiveness between sea and land takes place through the inclusion of a promenade, which links the beach with the built environment, and through the recovery of the historic port that becomes a focal point. Moreover, the strengthening of this unbreakable bond is stressed by the new skyline, by the residences that are inclined towards the sea, by the redevelopment of the town centre, based on a system of connected squares with the promenade and the sea, and by the building of a spa, which is opening onto the beach. The spa commemorates the origins of Viserba, once called “Queen of the Waters”.