Residenze Porta Labicana: Revitalizing a Former Industrial Site in Rome

Near a railway viaduct in Rome’s historic San Lorenzo district, Residenze Porta Labicana seamlessly integrates with the area’s post-industrial architecture, while simultaneously revitalizing it with its balance of tradition and innovation.

The work of Studio Ottaviani, this demolition-and-reconstruction project occupies a densely built area of public housing. Its objectives were urban regeneration and the architectural restoration of a site previously occupied by two early 20th-century soap factories. These structures comprised three-by-three solid brick columns supporting long iron trusses.

Residenze Porta Labicana and San Lorenzo’s industrial heritage

The project comprises three buildings of varying heights that share a photovoltaic canopy atop a network of steel stairs and walkways painted blue. This design reflects an organic and cohesive vision that engages with the area’s industrial heritage.

A distinctive element of this post-industrial design is the light-colored terracotta brick façade, which creates a uniform, understated, and material-focused surface that highlights the openings and recessed balconies of the façades, while blending into the local context.

Primarily residential, the three buildings comprise 20 units. A common area at street level includes green spaces, shared facilities, an office, a gym for residents, and a utility room.

The upper floors host apartments with five different layouts, ranging from 49 to 69 square meters. Each unit has a private balcony off the living area, creating a balance of indoor and outdoor, shared and private spaces.

Reinterpreting the ballatoio typology

The decision to divide the complex into three separate yet interconnected buildings stemmed from the need to adapt to the site’s configuration and create an open street frontage. This approach enabled the creation of visual screens and a new depth of field, visible from both the new internal courtyard and existing external viewpoints.

The project reinterprets the ballatoio typology with its outdoor walkways, so characteristic of the San Lorenzo district, through a contemporary lens. The three buildings are organized around an external shared staircase, which serves as both a horizontal and vertical connection. Two external walkways branch off the staircase, providing access to the different floors.
Conceived as a sculptural element, the staircase widens at points to accommodate seating areas for social interaction.

Both key visual elements of the design, the elevator and the photovoltaic canopy are integral parts of this circulation system, the photovoltaic canopy also acting as a crowning and unifying element for the complex.

The system formed by the staircase, external walkways, elevators, and photovoltaic canopy features prefabricated metal elements and a uniform color palette. This palette extends to the internal façades of the three buildings, with different tones distinguishing the complex’s interior and exterior surfaces.

Through the use of materials with low thermal conductivity and high sound-absorbing properties, the building meets high standards of thermal and acoustic insulation. Located in common areas, heat pumps provide heating, cooling, and hot water for the units.

The photovoltaic canopy, which powers the entire system, comprises a steel structure that houses glass photovoltaic cells, providing high energy efficiency and a transparent surface.

>>> Discover Atelier Tarabusi’s affordable housing project in Paris’s XVIII arrondissement