Giuseppe Marchica

Degree thesis in Architectural Design

A new threshold between city and sea: Trapani's Waterfront project

Thesis by Giuseppe Marchica
E-mail: giuseppe.marchica@hotmail.it
Master's Degree in Architecture - Milan Polytechnic
School of Architecture and Society
Speaker: Prof. Roberto Spagnolo
Co-rapporteur: Arch. Andrea Fradegrada
A.A. 2013 - 2014

The thesis project aims to redevelop the southern seafront of the city of Trapani; it is closely connected to a local reality, to a complex and problematic urban fabric.
The case of Trapani presents the problems of a non-integrated set of two different water fronts: the north coast, strongly characterized by pre-existences of historical value such as the 16th century walls of Tramontana, and the south coast, characterized by the presence of artisanal activities linked to the ancient fishing culture, however endangered; the latter are located in close relationship with the areas of the historic center, closest to the sea, and with large areas of environmental value, where they are threatened by the coexistence of shipbuilding and industrial activities.
The project aims to reconfigure the South Promenade through a process that enhances the tourist image of the city and adapts to new growth needs, such as the construction of a cruise terminal or new docks for mooring a larger number of boats. .
The primary purpose of the work is the design of a new form of living which, starting from the primary historical nodes of the north coast, relates to the rest of the city by creating a seam. A new architectural language that closely links the pre-existing, highly stratified and discontinuous historical structure with the marina.
The project is configured as a new design of measures and cornerstones which, in relation to the road axes connecting the two coasts, "tidies up" the Trapani waterfront.
A large square destined for the sale of fish located at the end of the Trapani waterfront and a new architectural complex of artistic and cultural value which, replacing the old bastion of the sixteenth-century walls now destroyed, stands as the primary project cornerstone. A system of canopies, designed with the aim of hosting functions of public interest but above all of generating covered and shaded paths, connect these two nodes.