Pre-war extension of Bologna had followed the historicalstructure of the city with its squares, streets, dwellings andpublic buildings, but the combination of capitalist enter-prise and public housing development changed this stra-tegy after the war. Dwellings were erected outside the citycenter following new models, and the center was left to acombination of decay and speculative redevelopment. Themovement of the poor to the periphery encouraged socialdivisions as speculative development disrupted the urbancore. The historic center began an apparently irreversibleprocess of decline.

In the 1960s, when the boom began to slow and urgentinfrastructure problems like sewage, lighting, and high-ways had been solved, planners started thinking about "anew urban strategy according to the social perspectives ofthe political programs" (Pierluigi Cervellati in 1962). Theresult was an urban program for the "preservation" of thehistoric center. The authors considered existing town cen-ters "as elements of polycentric systems" in order to reducethe pressure of the service sector arising from the develop-ment of office space in the historic center. The task was torestore the present buildings in the historic center and thenassign them to the people that had always lived there,rather than moving them to separate, distant working-classdistricts.

Preserving the historic center thus concerned the socialstructure as well as the buildings, considering the "struc-ture" of the whole pre-existent. Urban form was defined asan organism (of buildings, people, milieu, etc.) to be pre-served materially and socially. The extension of the con-cept of "artistic patrimony" to "existing buildings patri-mony," and the connection of "restoration" to both monu-ments and town planning, changed the approach to the resi-dential buildings of the historic center. The economicaspect became more relevant than pure consistency ofstructure and material, designers paid as much attention tothe typology and the environment.

From these reflections derived the project for Bologna, anattempt to create an "integral restoration". Conceived in aboard of political and social management of the city, theplan sought to free the development of the city from specu-lative mechanisms. The concept of architecture itself,which formerly intended urban expansion and research ofnew formal solutions in favor of the enjoyment of a mino-rity of intellectuals, was completely modified. An architec-ture of real social functions, in contrast to a traditionalfunctionalism, was deployed to stop an urban expansioncaused by capitalistic mechanisms. This plan marked anend to the illusion of the avant-garde deeply connected tothe growth of industrial production.

Leonardo Benevolo strongly influenced town planning inBologna. In 1961 he received the assignment for a firstversion of the "Piano per la conservazione del Centro stori-co". The final version was drawn by his assistant and townplanning councilor Pierluigi Cervellati and was officiallypresented and adopted by the town council on 21.7.1969.The proposed model made a clear distinction between cen-ter and outskirts, and suggested the preservation of the tra-ditional typology as well as the present inhabitants. Theplan proposed an intervention in the general physical struc-ture of the historic center and thus considered monumentsand dwellings to be of equal importance. The plan consi-dered the dwellings (houses and collective equipment),public buildings and places to be a social service determi-ned by the needs of the people. The historic center thusbecame a living place for the normal middle-class, wherearchitecture and town planning reconstructed their personalneeds as well as respecting the needs of economic produc-tion.

Revitalization of historical centers has not been a solelyItalian problem. Issues across Europe ranged from conser-vation of existing buildings to the restructuring of de-stroyed contexts. The classicist restoration of a traditionalcity image can be seen in the reconstruction of city blocksin Brussels after the ideas of Maurice Culot since thepublishing of "The Brussels Declaration" in 1978. Anurban renaissance has been aided by the restructuring pro-jects for Barcelona since 1980: public places and prome-nades have become architectural fantasies. The restruc-turation of Dublin's Temple Bar district since 1991 did notexclude modernist architectural language. But it was theBologna experiment that set the standard by combining thepreservation of historic buildings with an adequate socialpolicy.

Valerio Giancaspro

Revitalization of Historic Town CentersBologna, Plan for the Preservation of the Historic Center, Pierluigi Cervellati and others, since 1969

Bologna, buildings in via Santa Caterina before the restoration. Bologna, buildings in via Santa Caterina after the restoration. Facades have only been one part ofthe integral block preservation.

Bologna, plan of the San Leonardo block, first floor, existing conditions, 1978.

Bologna, plan of the San Leonardo block, first floor, restoration project, 1978. The existingtypology has been respected and additions have been made in analogy.

Bologna. The arcades as the secondary road system give to the city itsspecial character and have therefore been preserved by the restorationplan completely.

Bologna, restoration project of the Solferino block, 1977. The project not only savedthe street facades but also the entire buildings; inhabitants could remain on the spot.

Bologna, main building types of town houses. In order to develop an adequate preserva-tion strategy, the typology of the city had been studied carefully.

Bologna, restoration plan of the Solferino block, second floor, 1977. The project respected the typology of the exi-sting town houses.