Belmonte Calabro

Hypothesising a Small Town Regeneration Method

Through Initiation of a Major Design Scheme

Ines Amorim Liborio

 Acknowledgements

Thank you to Jane McAllister, Sandra Denicke-Polcher

and Rita Elvira Adamo for creating the opportunity
to experience Belmonte. Orizzontale for handing over
new skills and knowledge. Franco, Francesco, Franco and
Suzy, Angelo and the rest of the community of Belmonte
for being welcoming. Luca Puzzoni, Anthony James, Sade
Davies, Louisa Ling, Reem Khatoun and Harry Breeden for
being a Casa in England.
 Contents

Introduction 5

Chapter 1 - Belmonte

1.1 - Cultural Context 9

1.2 - Locals 11
1.3 - Migrants 12
1.4 - What has Gone On 12-13

Chapter 2 - Characters Involved

2.1 - Le Seppie 14
2.2 - Orizzontale 15-16
2.3 - Crossing Cultures 17
2.4 - Short term intervention for a Long Time Process 18

Chapter 3 - Live Project

3.1 - Crossings and Mudchute Satellite 19-20

3.2 - Casa 20-21

Chapter 4 - Design Project Proposal

4.1 - Winery in Small Towns 24-25

4.2 - Festa del Novello 25
4.3 - Project Proposal 26-30

Conclusion 31

References 33-37

5
 Introduction

The opportunity of having a first-hand experience as a tempo-

rary local in Belmonte Calabro, Italy, brought about several ideas
and speculations regarding regeneration. Through findings from
the involvement in several of Belmonte’s current interventions
and interactions with locals, this thesis will explore some of the
existing methods of regeneration as well as the proposition of a
major design project as a starting point. It will seek to speculate
on whether this type of town should be correlated to the idea of
a museum, handing it over to the tourism sector while remain-
ing encapsulated. Or should the final aim be inclined towards a
progressively socially driven and vibrant context, thus turning it
into a working town.
Would this result in a radical change? The locals are keen on its
modification and affirm that they would not be against demol-
ishing part of the abandoned structures to accommodate space
for it. They are in need of something that is going to benefit a
whole range of demographic, both young and old people that
are coming to the shore. They want it to be a living town. With
the emigration of the majority of the locals being so recurrent,
educating the younger generation about the common crafts and
culture of the region is often overlooked thus making a regenera-
tion difficult for the town in its current condition.

A regeneration is the process of making an area, institution, etc. develop

and grow strong again.1 In an urban context, it aims to improve the
quality of life, while at a larger scale of work to promote econo-
my growth. Talon said: “a comprehensive and integrated vision
and action which leads to the resolution of urban problems and
which seeks to bring about a lasting improvement in the eco-
nomic, physical, social and environmental condition of an area
that has been subject to change.”2

1 Oxford Dictionary, Definition of regeneration noun, (2020), https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/defini-

tion/english/regeneration
2 Talon, A., 2010. Urban Regeneration In The UK. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.

7
Regeneration seeks to improve and create more equal commu-
nities, mainly in under-performing regions. It also seeks to break
poverty cycles and make areas more appealing for investors as
well as local residents.

However, the idea of regeneration is totally rejected by some

communities as they might feel a sense of exclusion or that their
culture will be lost within the interventions.
There are a few different approaches that can be implement-
ed when aiming to avoid a phase of stagnation. A government
approach for example, looks out to community groups and
neighbourhood strategies. This method ensures to prioritise
the local people when developing project ideas and makes sure
they are engaged and have a say regarding decision making and
urban planning. The environmental aspect considers green spaces,
waste management, recycling projects as well as green belts and
the reuse of brown fields. Generating job opportunities and
skills for the local people along with funding for infrastructures,
encouraging renovation of existing buildings and private invest-
ments is part of an economic approach. Meanwhile the cultural/
social improves housing, provides educational facilities and also
promotes culture and innovation.

Following the questions of Why Belmonte? How being a tempo-

rary local led to a further research of the town and an under-
standing of the community that was obtained by interacting with
the locals. How a short-term intervention for a long-term change has
been changing the town through the collaboration of different
institutions. How Live Projects are having a positive impact in both
the town and the community? Learning by doing and the crea-
tion of a “House” where people gather together and the connec-
tion it has to the people involved on it.

8
All these hypothesis lead to the main hypothesis of this disser-
tation: proposing a design project as a starting point for a regeneration in
Belmonte. How can that develop and strengthen the community
and what are the benefits and impacts that it would have on the
town, in order to make it potentially achievable.

“Calabria seems to have been created by a

capricious God who, after creating different
worlds, had fun mixing them together”
— Guido Piovene (Viaggio in Italia, 1957)

9
View of Belmonte Old Town (Source: Doctor Drone)

10
 Chapter 1 - Belmonte

1.1 Cultural Context

A small town on a hilltop overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea is

located in Calabria, in the south of Italy. There is very limited
access into the region, composed of one narrow road that allows
people to drive to the town and over three kilometres of a pe-
destrianised road that connects the town to the marina. On the
marina, it is possible to access the main line where the train runs
from Naples to Reggio Calabria. It is ten minutes away from
Amantea and half an hour from Paola. These are two main towns
with train stations that help to facilitate the access to Belmonte.
The character of Belmonte is highlighted through the greater
amount of derelict and abandoned buildings in comparison to
occupied buildings. It reflects the unique abandoned state that is
accentuated by the peculiar topography of Belmonte. This par-
ticular character is derived by a phenomenon of young people
moving to larger cities seeking to continue their studies and take
their education further. There are around thirty children in the
town, all of which attend the same school (an assembly of pri-
mary and middle education). The lack of children in the region
has decelerated the chance of opening another institution. This
means all the teenagers at age 13 are forced to move elsewhere if
they intend to have higher studies. This does not only occur with
the younger generation but also with adults who seek to move
elsewhere in search for job opportunities. Belmonte has less than
2000 habitants and it is safe to say it is at risk of depopulation,
following in the footsteps of a third of the villages in Italy.

11
 Belmonte Old Town

Marina

Tyrrhenian Sea

Map of Belmonte

12
1.2 Locals

People that come to visit Belmonte not only bring income but
also hope and the perception of change. This was crucial in per-
suading the locals to change their idea of foreigners coming to
their town with propositions in mind as they were not on board
with it initially when the first intervention took place. Witness-
ing the benefits and a whole new environment made the locals
embrace a change and become open to welcoming outlanders.

Giuseppe Suriano and six of his colleagues have lived in Belmonte

their whole lives and so are considered locals. They are the team
responsible for the EcoBelmonte, the only virtual hotel in the en-
tire region. Fourteen out of several abandoned houses in the his-
toric centre were renovated to be a part of it. There was no need
for funding from neither European Union funds, nor the Italian
Government, as they used the help of the association A Praca,
for the required bureaucratic process. Giuseppe said: “There
cannot be hospitality without passion; you can welcome some-
one, give them a place to stay. But without passion you cannot
see through the eyes of your audience or understand their world.
Without passion you cannot create a network of professionals
because you cannot inspire others or give them the enthusiasm
to work together even when they are competitors.”. This shows
how the locals are open to receive foreigners in their town.

Francesco, the owner of A Taverna Intru U Vicu, a restaurant and

a hotel accessed through one of the alleyways in the old town,
often approaches the students showing interest in what they are
doing. He gets involved in their work by looking at their draw-
ings and listening to what their project proposals would be for
Belmonte, giving his opinion about it.

13
1.3 Migrants

The south of Italy is one of the most prominent locations for

refugees to reach, as it is in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea. It
also facilitates the ones that intend to move further North within
the country or to other countries in Europe. According to the
UNHRC (The UN Refugee Agency), Italy hosts over 170,000 ref-
ugees nowadays. In 2017, 40% of the refugees that came across
the Mediterranean Sea to Italy were granted asylum, a percentage
that is getting lower and lower over the years. They come from
Africa (Senegal, Nigeria, Gambia, Ivory Coast) and Asia (Paki-
stan, Syria, Afghanistan) by maritime transportation through the
Eastern, Central and Western Mediterranean routes to arrive in
Belmonte. They live between the old town and the refugee centre
located in Amantea.

The migrants leave their home hoping for integration and better
opportunities, both professional and pedagogical. They have
the opportunity to receive a basic education as well as learning
the local language. However, many migrants cannot progress to
further education as it is very difficult to attain the documentation
needed. Consequently, they start making use of their previously
learned skills in whatever is needed from the communities around,
which is something that they cannot do back in their countries as
there is a shortage of opportunities. The refugees carry a range
of different skills that are definitely distinct from the local’s skills.
This is a further link for integration through a combination of
building skills.

1.4 What Has Gone On

Since 2016, a live project has been taking place in Belmonte. The
project goes by the name Crossings. This is a project that has been
happening every summer ran by the non-profit organisation La
Rivoluzione Delle Seppie with the collaboration of Orizzontale and

14
London Metropolitan University. Crossings bring together students,
artists and designers from all over the world to work alongside
the migrants and the locals. This had a big impact on the local's
point of view, as it generated an interaction with new cultures
and skills, showing them how Belmonte can change and be a
“house” for foreigners.

In 2019, Mudchute Satellite was introduced as a new intervention

in Belmonte. It is a workshop that takes place over 5 days in
February by La Rivoluzione Delle Seppie and London Metro-
politan University, where students have the chance to put into
practice some of the knowledge learnt throughout the year. The
aim is to design and build a structure that would be used by the
community, whether at events or on a daily basis. It also works in
collaboration with the aforementioned Orizzontale, the migrants
and some other students from the Mediterranean University of
Reggio Calabria.

Being within a context of a unique assembly of not solely its his-

torical and cultural traditions, but also the number of workshops
carried out in the past three years, responding to its political
and social landscape, Belmonte represents an appropriate case
study in order to speculate on possible different approaches and
research towards a further chapter for the town.

Occupied

Abandoned Buildings

Derelict

15
 Chapter 2 - Characters involved

2.1 Le Seppie

La Rivoluzione Delle Seppie is a non-governmental organisa-

tion from Belmonte. A non-profit organisation (NGO) is an
organisation in which no stockholders or owners share in profits
and losses, which exists not to earn revenue but to promote a
mission that enhances the public welfare. It uses its funding to
pursue a specific purpose using marketing tactics to assist with
growth, funding and prosperity.

The organisation is based in Belmonte and composed by

5 members. One of them, Rita Elvira Adamo, is an Italian
Architect that studied at London Metropolitan Universi-
ty. Rita is from Amantea and closed to the context. Their
organisations aims to increase awareness and knowledge to
the situation in Belmonte and they see depopulation and
immigration in smalls town as an opportunity rather than a
crisis.

When asked to describe their approach Rita said: “The

model of urban regeneration we propose seeks to be a
concrete answer to the dramatic issue of depopulation
of small Italian villages, juxtaposed to the more invasive
obstacle of gentrification. It is a process of transformation
that acts on a gradual basis, giving the time to the inhabit-
ants to participate, feel it as theirs. Moreover it gives them
the chance to have a first hand experience of this gradual
change and thus accept these transformations, intervening
when necessary.”

16
For them, bringing together distinct cultures stimulates
cultural innovation as well as social development.

“At first, we are a small group of four people, then 10, and
then, without even realising it, there are more than 40 of
us, in a town that officially has a thousand inhabitants. The
foreigners who arrive greet the locals with a friendly tone
that comes from a shared experience, which is still mysteri-
ous to me.”1 - Rita, Domus Magazine (2020).

2.2 Orizzontale

Orizzontale is a collaborative architectural practice based in Rome.

They have a different scale of intervention compared to other
practices and their process hinges on small infrastructures. Giuseppe
Grant, one of the architects from Orizzontale, explained their
view on architectural practices approach by saying: “We divide
temporary interventions in two different values, one more mate-
rial and the other immaterial. The combination of the two terms
refers firstly to the actual structure and secondly to the ephemeral
emotions and feelings. Both are important as together they make
the process more flexible, giving it a unique character. A tempo-
rary structure can be put beside any context and it can be removed
without leaving any traces and the ephemeral part can be extraor-
dinary, a fictional exodus to ordinary life, the human context.”2

One of their most known interventions was the “8½”, a portable

theatre comprising of a wall which was eight and a half meters
tall. This structure was built in four weeks and awarded with
the international prize of Young Architects Program organised by
MAXXI Museum with MoMA/MoMA PS1 (New York City),
Constructo (Santiago de Chile), Istanbul Modern (Turkey) and MMCA
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Seul (Korea).
1 Domus, La Rivoluzione delle Seppie: The constant movement of a hybrid community in Calabria. 2020 https://
www.domusweb.it/it/architettura/2020/02/25/la-rivoluzione-delle-seppie-in-calabria-il-moto-permanente-di-una-
comunita-ibrida-.html
1 Giuseppe Grant from Orizzontale on a talk at London Metropolitan University (28th of February, 2020)

17
The idea behind the theatre was to investigate the gain of public
space, where the show could be organised or spontaneous as well
as the interaction between people. It consisted of a huge LED
lighting system facade with graphics. The wall divided the spaces,
the stage and the audience, and it allowed the audience to climb
up to an upper level that offered a view to the square and eventual
shows. Although it was designed specifically to a particular square
it could be easily disassembled in order to be re-assembled and
adapted to other sites. It was only up for six months but its
presence resulted into an increasing vibrancy of the area that is
still of ongoing relevance.

Another intervention made by them was in Azores, Portugal.

It was titled Casa do Quarteirão and was displayed during the
annual art festival Walk&Talk happening on the island of São
Miguel. It took shape within two weeks, where the first week’s
outcome was to complete the design of the intervention
including research and engaging with the neighbourhood and
the second week to build the structure. They used Japanese
Redwood (Cryptomeria Japonica), a type of wood that can be
found in Eastern Asia, that is characterised by its pink colour
and a particular smell that can be scented when walking past. It
consisted of two different structures. The first, a pavilion, of
which the aim was to re-create a traditional house from Azores
that invites people to gather together. The second consisted of a
smaller structure with a balcony that offered a different view of
the area. They worked together with some of the habitants. This
is an example of a very spontaneous temporary structure done
in July of 2016 that can still be currently found in the São Miguel
Island.
In 2017, a competition for the regeneration of the Piazza Europa,
Aprilia (in the Region of Lazio) was launched by the Italian
Board of Architects alongside the Italian Ministry of Culture
where Orizzontale was awarded the first prize.

18
2.3 Crossings Cultures

Sir John Cass Faculty of Art, Architecture and Design, London Metro-
politan University, is another institution that plays an important
role. La Rivoluzione Delle Seppie together with the tutors from
studio 3 (undergraduates) and Unit 6 (postgraduates) has created
Crossing Cultures. This is a 3 year collaboration between Bel-
monte Calabro and London Metropolitan University. This initi-
ative started bringing students to Belmonte every year to work
alongside other students from Reggio Calabro University, the
refugees and the locals. The annual seven day field trip encourag-
es the students to think deeper about the town, its history and its
community. The students participate in several different work-
shops where the locals share their passion and skills. This week
looks out for the exploring, investigating and surveying of a spe-
cific site that is going to be used afterwards as the starting point
of their design project. After the analysis is complete, the aim
is to come up with a proposal for the public spaces that seeks
to satisfy the needs of the community as well as enriching the
town. The university also offers the opportunity for the students
to work on a live project. This provides a unique experience of
working on a construction site alongside with trained and knowl-
edgeable people. The London Metropolitan University and La
Rivoluzione Delle Seppie were able to expand their collaboration
with the implementation of the Mudchute Week. It is another
opportunity for the students to work in close contact with archi-
tects and other experienced people on-site for a week.

19
2.4 Short term intervention for a Long Time Process

The three identities mentioned above work together for the re-
generation of Belmonte. Driven by the same approach, they seek
to propose an implementation of architectural methods through
the combination of temporary interventions and a long-term
process. How do they do it? Learning by doing. “This process
of learning through making using live projects is focused on the
idea of collaboration and collective involvement, understood
here as “negotiations”. Some participatory theories and methods
put into practice can result in a static process, lacking flexibility
and adaptability to changing situations. In order to set up the
horizons for praxis, there is a need to understand and engage
with the different levels of engagement (domestic, neighbour-
hood, city) as a way of creating an assembly of involvement.
This creates a nesting of various stages, where hierarch refers
to an intensity of holistic participation.”1 Bo Tang and Maurice
Mitchell on the importance of learning through making. This
method is important because it allows first hand experience of
the context. Therefore implying a more aware decision making,
which provides new skills while connecting to the local issues.
This is focused on the idea of collaboration. They are collec-
tively involved to put to use research, teaching and practice in
architecture, considering the limitations of the town and its
community as well as exploring new strategies.2

1 Tang, Bo; Mitchel, Maurice. Live Project: Innovating the Present. 2016
2 Maurice, Mitchel; Tang, Bo. Live Projects as Research: Tools of Practice Research in Making Architecture. 2015

20
 Chapter 3 - Live Project

3.1 Crossings and Mudchute Satellite

Crossings 2016 was the first live project to happen in Belmonte.

A place that contrasts two different realities: the influx of
refugees coming through the Mediterranean Sea and the
depopulation of the region. Once again, the main goal was
promoting social interaction and create awareness towards the
current situation. Back at that time, the locals were not very
keen on having people staying in their town. That was the main
experience that made their perception change. Since then,
Franco and Suzy, the owners of El Antico Caffe Marano (the only
cafe in the town), hosted some of the participants on their
empty flats, above their cafe, as well as providing lunch for all
the people involved in the workshops. Angelo, the owner of Bar
Dello Sport, on the other hand, was in charge of providing the
dinner. His bar became the main place of conviviality, after the
daily workshops were finished, between the participants and
the locals. The first workshop consisted mainly of developing
interaction with the community. The following year, Orizzontale
joined. It was mostly based on furniture making. From there,
the number of participants increased, therefore the work done
over the week also developed into something more elaborated.
In all the crossings there were several workshops: Silk Mill Visit,
Basket Weaving, Drawing classes, Muppet, Soap Making, Pasta
di Ziti. In addition to these, daily talks by architects and artists
from different places took place. The combination of both is
a learning opportunity to all the people involved, as well as the
locals, through educational approaches in multiple creative fields,
promoting critical confrontations and multidisciplinary debates.

21
The first Mudchute Satellite offered to the migrants the opportu-
nity to be involved in the project, not only as a simple participant
or student, but as a fundamental tool, making use of their skills
and pass it on the students from both universities: London Met-
ropolitan and Reggio Calabria. Steel frame structures were given
as a base for further timber construction above. The aim was to
build mobile structures that could be used by the community at
events and be stored at the Library. From this workshop were
created a mobile library, a mobile seating and a mobile theatre. The last
Mudchute consisted of designing and building a canopy for the
terrace of the old Convent.

3.2 Casa

Crossings 2019 focused in three different areas: Art and Thea-

tre, Visual Communication and Creative Marketing and Design and
Self-Building. Barbara Cammarata (Artist), Matteo Blandford
(Designer) and Orizzontale (Architecture Collective) were the
responsible for each area.

Focusing on the area of construction, the aim was to renovate

the Old Convent, a communal property, to build a house of
culture using a community (the participants on the workshop,
the locals and migrants) as the main engine behind the methods
of construction. Giuseppe Grant, describing the process of
rebuilding the convent involving several people from different
backgrounds, stated: “Re imagine abandoned places and make
those spaces becoming places. Everybody puts something into
the chain process and it produces something new”.1 The whole
design was made by Orizzontale that worked alongside everyone
involved on the construction site.

1 Giuseppe Grant talk at the Casa (Crossings 2019)

22
Over the six days the construction in the old Convent consisted
of renovating three rooms. Started with the flooring, steps to
access the windows, handrails on the main staircase to furniture
making.

This week, the convent became the Casa (House) for all the
ones who worked on it as well as all the people the place will
host in the future. The workshop finished with a presentation
to the community including the mayor of Belmonte. Apart
from all the construction and learning that happened over that
week, the Crossings Workshop managed to not solely create an
interaction between the foreigners and the local community but
also to create a new community from all over the world working
together to create something new. Here was born a new concept
of Belmonte - Belmondo (Mondo means World in Italian) - a new
social fabric created by a sense of belonging shared by all the
characters involved.

The Casa is what leads to the unique state of Belmonte: the col-
laboration between all the characters, not only the ones that were
involved in the construction. It is a community centre, a collabo-
ration room. The importance of the presence of a place such as
La Casa lies in the possibility it offers to host gatherings on site,
implying constant consultation and experience of the context.

23
Casa Construction

24
Casa

25
 Chapter 4 - Major Design Proposal

4.1 Winery in a Small Town

A Vineyard is a business that produces wine from the grapes grown

in an adjacent piece of land. In a small town it has the potential to
open doors to tourism and enhance its experience. If the tourism
would be carefully and wisely developed it would bring cultural,
environmental and economic benefits to the community. The
Fig Factory (Colavolpe), located at the marina, is the main com-
merce in Belmonte and all their workers live in the old town. They
export the figs to the whole country. A wine production could
be another resource to establish a connection with commercial
opportunities as the investment in one more local business would
definitely increase the economy. A new local business interrelates
with the community as it needs to guarantee a local market for the
product to be sold, in this case, the wine. Not only it would raise
capital, but it would also increase the supply of labour. This means
that those job roles could be fulfilled by all the young adults that
emigrate looking for jobs opportunities as well as the migrants.
A vineyard would promote and increase traditional agriculture,
joining other local agricultural practices such as mushroom
picking. One of the big potentials of this town are the locals and
the migrants due to their crafts and skills, so it is crucial that local
businesses support and show commitment to the community. A
strong relationship between both maintains the community fabric
as well as encouraging further development in local area.

“When businesses prosper, the quality of life in the community

will be better … a high quality of life in a community will result in
more prosperous businesses”.1 Besser and Miller, on the impor-
tance of a business in a community.

1 Besser, T. L. and Miller, N. J. 2004. The risks of enlightened self-interest: small businesses and support for communi-
ty. Business and Society, 43: 398–425.

26
Both tourism and agricultural products would attract the interest
of regional bodies to a small size business that uses traditional
production until is profitable do to mass production. This could
also be a strategy towards an even bigger scenario, as most of
the small-size wineries, lead the region to a national exposure
due to the quality of their products gaining recognition that can
lead to international exposure.

4.2 Festa Del Novello

Festa del Novello happened for the first time in Belmonte Calabro
on the 15th of November of 2019. This event brought hun-
dreds of people to the town so they could enjoy the local food
and the Vino Novello, characterised for being a type of wine that
is released in early November, every year, on the Italian market.
The food and the wine were served in stalls, at different points
spread around the historic centre known as well as the old town.
This is one of the several annual events in Belmonte that help
promoting social interaction not only within the community but
also with the rest of the people that come over to the town to
attend the events.
That was the main idea behind the proposal of creating a winery
in the village as the Studio project.

Casa Square on a daily basis (Left) and Casa Square during the Festa Del Novello (Right)

27
4.3 Design Project

The vineyard would be located below the Belvedere Principe

Ravaschieri, facing the landscape and overlooking the Tyrrhenian
Sea. It used to be a garden belonging to the Palazzo Ravaschieri
Fieschi della Torre, where the princes of Belmonte used to live, back
on the sixteenth century. The garden, where black olives and
figs grow within free nature, is the perfect enclosure: it takes
advantage of the extraordinary view that Belmonte has to offer
and where astonishing sunsets can be experienced and perceived.
Being at north facing orientation means it is also convenient
in terms of light gain, as the sun rises from East and settles in
West, so the building has sunlight throughout the whole day. It
is appropriate to highlight that the high altitude allows to make
use of the strong winds for natural ventilation (reducing the
use for energy) but also energy production through positioning
wind towers in a strategic location, which is a technique that has
recently started to be adopted in the area, together with the in-
clusion of water basins (already included in the green belt below
the village) to avoid floods and provide natural cooling through
evaporation.

The choice of materials is rooted into an interest in local and

vernacular materials such as tufo. This volcanic tuff is a kind of
rock that is made out of volcanic ashes that are expelled from
the vent during a volcanic eruption. Those ashes are later com-
pacted into solid rocks. This has been a very common material in
Italy since the Romans and it is typical in the Old Town. Using
existing materials in the town avoids transportation therefore
gas emissions, which leads to higher sustainability. Building in
the old town would therefore suggest the use of small material
components which are easy to carry and allow transportation
through tight spaces, but also the use of the traditional skills that
would get the community involved in the construction.

28
View from the site overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea

29
It is also important to consider that the manufacture and use of
steel frame elements is both a typical type used in the countries
the refugees in Belmonte come from (Ghana, Syria, Nigeria,
Afghanistan, etc.) and in the immediate proximities (welded by
small businesses), which would bring a further link for integra-
tion through a combination of building skills. The migrants
would have an important role in the construction of the project
as their skills contrast the local’s ones.

Considering the involvement of the locals with skills in the

process of construction, Consultation would be an essential part
of the plan of work in order for the cooperation with the com-
munity to run smoothly and be an integral part of the design.
Therefore, following the approach of the Orizzontale architect’s
collective, there would be an intrinsic link between the skills of
local volunteers and the building method, where the Architect
has the role of transferring the consultation to the brief and
design development, but also representation of the communi-
ty within their organisation. Moreover, this project would seek
to encourage an approach that is more attentive towards con-
servation of the existing buildings and planning of the town,
the lack of which is a notable issue. The unique characteristics
of this town, such as its topography, the prominent closeness
between the buildings and a big part of the locals being old,
inform the building regulations that are particularly important
for the project. These would be the inclusion of fire escapes, and
the disabled people' access taking in consideration the already
existing three accesses of the site. The funds would be provid-
ed from EU Funds which offers funds for: Rural development,
Social Fund and Regional development. The project could fall
under all three of them as a small-sized enterprise promoting
social inclusion and employment, fostering the local tradition
of viticulture. The project would follow a traditional contract, the
most used method.

30
Plan with Site Highlighted

Front Elevation

31
The Client is the Proloco Association, the main representative of
both the community and the municipality and that is also look-
ing after the Library and the Museum in the Old Town. This is
a contract that suits inexperienced clients as it is the one with
the lower risk, considering that the contractor takes the finan-
cial risk for the construction even though the project would be
funded. Proloco would assign a local architect as it is important
to supervise and closely follow the construction. The design team
would need a landscape architect, a demolition specialist, and,
most importantly, a structural engineer with expertise in existing
buildings, considering the building would cut through the hill and
use some of the existing walls.

The project would consist of an ample open cellar with a vaulted

ceiling where both the locals and the tourists would be able to
follow the entire process of wine making. The grapes would grow
on the mountains, 100 meters down from the building and they
would be hand harvested by the pickers. As it is very hard to
get machinery on the steep slopes and via the narrow roads, the
workers would then load a monorail train that would transport
the grapes up to the building. The idea of the monorail train
was based on the traditional method of Cinque Terre, a city in
the north of Italy, famous for its wine and that alike Belmonte
is situated on a mountainous area. Once the grapes are brought
up to the road, a pulley system would be used to bring them up to
the site. There, under a big vaulted canopy, they would be ready
to be traditionally crushed by other workers. The fifty-meters
long building would then host the rest of the process, from the
fermentation to the bottling phase. At that point, the wine would
be stored before its selling. The second vaulted canopy, where the
shop would be, would host wine tasting, where bottles could be
sold but also collected for reselling by other shops in the town —
the supermarket, the cafes and restaurants — as well as exported
to other regions within the country.

32
Isometric showing exploded Belvedere with Vineyard proposal coming into the Site

33
 Conclusion

While countless Italian small towns fall in a state of complete

abandonment and disuse, numerous examples prove that uncon-
cerned urban regeneration strategies can equally lead to harmful
effects.1
There is an ongoing tendency in urban regeneration to fail a ne-
gotiation between the user and the designers, imposing, through a
top-down approach, strategies which are either out of touch with
their contexts or simply unfeasible due to lack of funds or local
participation.2
The success of the aforementioned workshops proved there is a
tangible product of a making method which entirely unfolds —
from its conceptual stage to its material making — in the local
resources.
The enhancement of a methodology which involves the local
characters has the ability to not solely move towards a re-engine
of the economy and social vibrancy of the area, but to do so in a
manner that does not erode the inestimable cultural value of the
existing context.
The making of a winery has the potential to follow this path,
seeking to play a part in a regeneration inclined more towards
long-term resilience and gradual opportunity provision rather
than immediate gain.

Belmonte Calabro, which now not only accommodates its local

inhabitants, but has opened possibility for new characters, is nev-
ertheless conveyor of its own history and culture. A negotiation
between these and its current conditions needs to be the founda-
tion for any attempt of regeneration. In the joint construction of
the structure, in the celebration of the Festa del Novello, in the
carrying of the tradition of Bacchanalia, in the commonality of
different skills, in sharing the same wine, there lies Belmondo.

1 Bendix, Aria, Italy’s abandoned villages plan to save themselves from ruin by selling homes for $1 or less, Business
Insider, (2019), https://www.businessinsider.com/italian-villages-selling-dollar-homes-2019-2?r=US&IR=
2 Weaver, M., Urban regeneration - the issue explained, (2001)
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2001/mar/19/regeneration.urbanregeneration1

34
35
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 List of Illustrations

All images belong to Ines Amorim Liborio unless stated otherwise.

39
School of Art, Architecture and Design

BA (Hons) Architecture

2020