Multifunctional Complex Rimini’s former trade show reGENERATION

By Stamatina Kousidi - 5 March 2020

With the regeneration project by Alessandro Bucci Architetti, Rimini’s former trade show grounds is today part of a broader natural ecosystem made up of the park surrounding the neighboring Lake Mariotti and, on a larger scale, the “Raggio Verde” connecting the site with the old town and onward to the sea. The project comprises a multifunctional complex that includes commercial, executive and residential use linked by open collective spaces.
By creating a new urban landscape, the project re-activates an area that until recently had lain unused. The former massing on the site was reduced, thereby allowing physical continuity with key neighboring sites - Palacongressi, Acquarena and other commercial areas - and improving connections to the road system. The regeneration of this urban area centered, however, on improving the quality of approximately 11,000 sq. m of existing public space, turning it into the green feature that organizes, separates, frames, conceals, insulates and purifies, but also promotes social activity and a sense of community. New walk- and cycle-ways enhance the livability of the green spaces around the new main building comprising two linked volumes: a single-level construction for commercial use and a three-level mixed-use building. The commercial building operates as a “green machine” with a vast 1,000 sq. m green wall containing over 17,000 climbing plants, an ample garden roof, patios that bring greenery into the interior spaces, photovoltaic panels and rainwater collectors. A sinuous green wall forms the base of the building’s main façade: a continuous curvilinear surface of transparent translucent glass panels supported by an aluminum skeleton. Overhangs and porches offer shady protected outdoor spaces during the day. At night, the building lights up like a giant curvilinear lantern enabling orientation and ease of circulation. Indeed, the architectural program goes well beyond the...