A political concept for the Gragnano Valley of Mills (Valle dei Mulini). Urban redevelopment of cultural-industrial heritage

Irina Di Ruocco; Irina Di Ruocco

doi:10.3934/urs.2023018

Urban Resilience and Sustainability

2023, Volume 1, Issue 4: 278-308. doi: 10.3934/urs.2023018

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A political concept for the Gragnano Valley of Mills (Valle dei Mulini). Urban redevelopment of cultural-industrial heritage

Irina Di Ruocco ^,

Department of Economics, Insubria University, 21100, Varese, Italy

Received: 31 October 2023 Revised: 17 December 2023 Accepted: 21 December 2023 Published: 31 December 2023

The scholarly community has been paying more attention to the issue of the revitalization of the historical conservation of cities and their alteration in the wake of Southern Italy's growing urbanization. Experts and scholars are beginning to understand the need for collaborative urban regeneration initiatives, protecting historical and cultural elements, upholding cultural identities, and establishing development districts. The Valley of the Mills of Gragnano, the subject of the proposed case study, is a complex issue that requires the consideration of several factors in addition to urban regeneration. These factors include the need to identify a system of multiple actions to regenerate the area, considering the current requirements for mitigating environmental risk in areas with cultural heritage, and suggesting monitoring and public participation actions for preservation. The complexity of the Valley of the Mills renovation is understood; it goes beyond the simple structural and architectural restoration of the buildings. In other cities similar to Gragnano where industrial, historical archeology and naturalistic significance run the risk of adversely affecting an extremely significant area from a historical and cultural perspective due to naturalistic and anthropogenic impacts, the article's goal is to present the case study of Gragnano as an example of a sustainable and moral urban renewal strategy. This research work aims to be proposed as a policy development guide for policy makers at local and regional levels for the development of the area.
- Gragnano,
- Valley of Mills,
- urban regeneration,
- resilient cities
Citation: Irina Di Ruocco. A political concept for the Gragnano Valley of Mills (Valle dei Mulini). Urban redevelopment of cultural-industrial heritage[J]. Urban Resilience and Sustainability, 2023, 1(4): 278-308. doi: 10.3934/urs.2023018

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Abstract

The scholarly community has been paying more attention to the issue of the revitalization of the historical conservation of cities and their alteration in the wake of Southern Italy's growing urbanization. Experts and scholars are beginning to understand the need for collaborative urban regeneration initiatives, protecting historical and cultural elements, upholding cultural identities, and establishing development districts. The Valley of the Mills of Gragnano, the subject of the proposed case study, is a complex issue that requires the consideration of several factors in addition to urban regeneration. These factors include the need to identify a system of multiple actions to regenerate the area, considering the current requirements for mitigating environmental risk in areas with cultural heritage, and suggesting monitoring and public participation actions for preservation. The complexity of the Valley of the Mills renovation is understood; it goes beyond the simple structural and architectural restoration of the buildings. In other cities similar to Gragnano where industrial, historical archeology and naturalistic significance run the risk of adversely affecting an extremely significant area from a historical and cultural perspective due to naturalistic and anthropogenic impacts, the article's goal is to present the case study of Gragnano as an example of a sustainable and moral urban renewal strategy. This research work aims to be proposed as a policy development guide for policy makers at local and regional levels for the development of the area.

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