Il ruolo del restauro nella rigenerazione urbana dei tessuti storici: un’esperienza didattica, nuove riflessioni

In recent years, the theme of urban regeneration – or the renewal of parts of cities or neighbourhoods that are often both marginalised and plagued by physical and social degradation – has attracted interest, becoming a multidisciplinary research topic. The term implies a series of improvement projects supported by participatory processes and public-private partnerships, which primarily affect urban, architectural and environmental heritage in order to facilitate their sustainable recovery and, at the same time, improve its vitality and performance. However, such actions are not always carried out with the proper care, in keeping with a design intended as a technical act that is culturally aware and methodologically founded. Frequently, in this context, urban policies and conservation strategies do not coincide as they are based on different points of view as regards ‘the advantages’ of such operations and are often biased in favour of economic and social interests to the detriment of the recovery and maintenance of the many values and meanings embodied in the urban fabric. Taking its cue from a teaching experience, this paper intends to debate the thorny issue of the methods and actions that should be applied when regenerating historic cities, focusing on the benefits that the field of conservation’s methodological approach can offer the whole process.