CONCEPT

The project derives from the reading of the existing city and of its surrounding territory - with the aim of finding the most suitable solution for the New Surbo in terms of communication with the territory, accessibility and mobility, respect of those functioning pre-existences, urban mixité, urban comfort. We started from the imposition of some fundamental points: the Industrial area must be on the South-west side of the city - next to the existing one - because of the prevailing winds coming from North; we wanted to preserve as much as possible the surrounding rural areas - especially on the North and East sides - because they are the identity of the territory and are a cultural and environmental heritage. Than we traced the most important routes following some functioning pre-existences. The main routes became the Cardo - which goe s from the centre of Lecce to the centre of Surbo - the Decumano - which goes from the backcountry to the seaside - and the oblique route representing the second access to the city - coming from the state highway SS613 exit to the upper part of the city which follow an existing route. The concept can be represented as a combination of concentric circles because we wanted to recreate the typical decreasing density of a historic city, with a functional - high density centre and belts of densities decreasing step-by-step. Another characteristic point of the project is the curvy green line which crosses the city coming from the countryside and produces some of the green public spaces. The New Surbo has a population of 26233 inhabitants and is divided in six districts - some are smaller and some have greater extension - each one has its own green spaces, buildings for social uses, car parking, schools in order to have a polycentric distribution of the functions inside the city.

The house typologies

For the project we used four house typologies:

• the SINGLE HOUSE has a surface of 10 x 10 meters and two levels. This typology is suitable for one family of maximum 6 persons - in fact it has a volume of 600 m3. We mainly used it on the edges of the new city – where density has to be lower .

• the SEMIDETACHED HOUSE has a surface of 15 x 10 meters and two levels. It is suitable for 2 families - one for each module 7,5 x 10 meters - and has a volume of 900 m3 . We used it all over the new city.

• the TWIN HOUSE is a modular typology because, from a minimum of 3 blocks, it can have many modules. The surface of each module is 10 x 10 meters and it has two levels - so each module is for one family, having a volume of 600 m3. We used it all over the city, but mainly in the first fringe after the city center.

• the RESIDENTIAL BUILDING is largely used in the project but is concentrated in the city center because we thought that was the best typology for a mixed use - both residential and commercial/administrative. The basic module has a surface of 10 x 25 meters - but the length and the shape of this typology change in order to fi t better each block. Furthermore we used it in 2 manners: the first has all the 3 levels with a residential function (so it can hosts a minimum of 21 persons) , the second has a ground floor with a commercial function and the other two with a residential one ( so it can hosts a minimum of 14 persons).

Each typology has been placed in its lot following the minimum distances of: 5 meters from the front and lateral boundaries; 10 meters from the back boundary.

The standards

Following the Italian National Code (D.M. 1444 / 1968) we considered these STANDARDS for each district:

• Green : 9 m2 / inh

• Education : 4,5 m2 / inh

• Parkings : 2,5 m2 / inh

• Buildings for social uses : 2 m2 / inh

Furthermore for schools we used the maximum distance radius to place them inside the districts:

• 300 m radius for nursery schools

• 500 m radius for junior schools

• 800 m radius for junior high schools

To dimension the high school - placed in the city center - we used 1,5 m2 / inh.

To dimension the Hospital we used 1,5 m2 / inh.

The districts

As said before the new Surbo has 6 districts of different surfaces.

DISTRICT 1 is the less extended in terms of surface. It is characterized by a part of the city center buildings, 4 green open spaces, a church, primary schools and buildings for social uses.

DISTRICT 2 has a medium surface extension . It is characterized by 3 green open spaces, primary and secondary schools, a church and a social building.

DISTRICT 3 has a medium surface extension. It is characterized by the presence of the Hospital, 3 green open spaces, primary and secondary schools, a church and some buildings for social uses. As the district 1 it is characterized by a part of the city center buildings.

DISTRICT 4 has a medium surface extension. It borders the park which filters the city from the industrial area. It is characterized by the presence of 2 green open spaces, primary and secondary schools, a church and social buildings. Also this district has a part of the city center buildings.

DISTRICT 5 see the section 4.3

DISTRICT 6 has a medium-large surface extension. It is characterized by the presence of 2 green open spaces, primary and secondary schools, a church, some buildings for social uses and some of the city center buildings.

INDUSTRIAL AREA is characterized by a small extension. It is a handcrafts area: this choice is due to the presence of the earlier Industrial area which Surbo has in common with Lecce - where there are metallurgic and mechanical factories.

THE MOBILITY SYSTEM

The mobility system consists of an outer and inner ones. The external system has a tangential street of 70 km/h running around the city and some streets of 50 - 70 km/h connecting the city with the adjacent municipalities – the most important is that one corresponding to the Cardo, which goes from Lecce to Surbo and connects them also with a tram line. The inner mobility system consists of streets of 15 - 30 - 50 km/h - they become step-by-step of minor velocity going from the outside to the inside of each district- which have mixed traffic, permitting the circulation of vehicles, cycles and pedestrians. The public transport is organized in a bus line (red) which circumnavigates the centre of the city , allowing to arrive at the centre of each district. The other main public transport is the tram line (yellow) which permits to go from the centre of Lecce to the centre of Surbo , and conversely. In addition to the cycle-pedestrian paths which are parts of the said mobility system, a curvy green line cross the city creating a different itinerary and permitting to reach several green open spaces. Finally, in order to create a real public space where people can meet and walk, we decided to create a pedestrian area in the core of the city, where the main public functions take place.

THE DISTRICT

The district we chose for our detailed analysis is n°5, that one located in the North-west side of the New Surbo. he main feature of this district is its centre, which is the Centre of the city - a pedestrian area characterized by the presence of the main square ( where are located the Church, the Town Hall and the Theatre), the High School, the Public Library and some buildings for social uses, in addition to the commercial ones. The district includes also two big green open spaces: one is a green park located on the South-west side, beside the Primary and Secondary schools, which is crossed by the curvy green line; the other one is a sport park, located on the upper part of the district, where people can practice.

The outdoor comfort and climate - sensitive design

Our detailed study concerns the main square of the new town, exactly where cardo and Decumano intersect, and where take place some of the most important civil functions, such as the Town Hall, the Church and the Theatre. The dimensions of the square and the disposition of the buildings required, in our opinion, a small study about the outdoor comfort and the climate issue. In particular we studied how shadows change during a year and how the wind flows into the square.

Shadows overlapping

We studied how shadows change during 4 days of the year, in particular the 2 solstices and the 2 equinoxes: 21 September , 21 December , 21 march, 21 June. For each day we overlapped the shadows of 4 different times by using a 3d model of the square. As you can see from the 4 produced overlapping: zone 1 is always shaded; zone 2 is always sunny; zone 3 is not so sunny during winter, but much sunny during summer; zone 4 is intermediate.

Prevalent winds

We studied winds which flows in our district during a year, their direction and temperature. Than we identified worst and best winds for the open space : - North – North East wind is prevalent during both winter and summer and may activate the canyon effect flowing between the two close buildings of the Town Hall and the Theatre. But during the summer it has an high temperature and may create an uncomfortable situation for people in the square. South wind is prevalent from January to April and in October and November but it doesn’t create problems because of its medium temperature, and also because the church building redirects it.

The solutions

In order to apply the analysis we took about winds and shadows we chose these solutions: Ginkgo biloba in zone 3 and 4 for its characteristic behaviour of deosuous tree but also for its particular shape; Laurus nobilis hedges in zone 2 in order to create shaded zones; Ginkgo biloba along the space between the Theatre and the Town Hall in order to prevent the canyon effect; a basin of water next to this space which would activates the evaporating cooling effect together with the wind, allowing the comfort inside the square; In order to prevent an excessive uncomfortable heat we chose to use a light pavement made of local stone.

THE URBAN PARK

The park is located in the 6th district, on the North-east side of the city. It is very close to the urban center and covers an area of approximately 3 ha, surrounded from each side by residential buildings and twin houses. Being in a good position we wanted to give the park a multifunctional identity creating different spaces for the execution of several activities, in order to make the park serviceable and versatile. The uses are: social allotments, together with two greenhouses; public open space with benches, shaded zones and a water basin; little bar stand; dogs area, facing a citrus grove; playground area; lawned areas for picnics or other uses. All these uses are contained in a rectangular shape park with its main access going from North-west to North-east - a straight street 10 meters width - placed at the center of the park. The other secondary accesses are orthogonal to the main one, they start from the boundaries and go to the center of the park, accompanied by the social allotments. The geometry is very simple, based on the orthogonality, but some oblique lines has been used: in the shape of the square where water sprays are installed; in the shape of the dogs area; in the shape of the Playground. Usability and accessibility are achieved thanking to a unique ground height and to the use of a light-coloured, semi-rough pavement in local stone.