Vetra Building, turning a neglected urban landmark into a bold dream for the neighborhood’s future

Is there a way to turn a neglected urban landmark into a bold dream for the neighborhood’s future? That was our challenge in renovating Milan’s ex-Tax Collector’s Office. Vetra Building is an intervention of urban regeneration that aims to reactivate the dialogue between an ex public building and a portion of the city it had barricaded itself from. The revival of the property begins from the building’s façade to reconnect, physically and visually, a previously abandoned park with the city. It then proceeds to spatial, material, plant engineering assets, earning Vetra a LEED Platinum status. In redeveloping this office building Il Prisma brings particular attention to open spaces by creating a new central square open to public passage and renovating an existing public space. The result is a two-block complex for more than 25,000 m2 total, with a new office building spread over 5 floors and a street-level food court. The remade ground floor hosts commercial spaces and common areas that act as a binder between the workspaces and services. In the heart of the Basilicas Park of Milan, an entire district comes back to life thanks to spaces, designed with a renewed sociality in mind. The revived Vetra Building is an open and varied ecosystem providing people with experience that goes beyond office hours and evolves throughout the day. A site-specific work of art was installed on Vetra’s façade on the occasion of the opening of the building in November 2021. The light sculpture “X”, which carries the signature of Patrick Tuttofuoco, an internationally acclaimed Italian artist, is inspired by the concepts of openness, contact and new ways to live space – values that guided the entire architectural redevelopment project of the building. Added value Il Prisma developed a strong identity for the revived Vetra through the conscious use of contemporary materials and typological choices that disrupt the building’s austerity while maintaining the continuity with pre-existing lines and shapes with respect for past traditions. Large glass areas and perforated metal sheet finishes are the elements that materially define the intervention. Location The building is located between the streets of Della Chiusa, Wittgens, Cardinal Caprara and Vetra Square, in Milan; its peculiarity lies in its strategic position near the San Lorenzo Basilica, with the main arcaded front facing the Basilicas Park. Completion: 2021 Client: AXA IM Alts