A Visionary Place
in Bologna

In 2020 City Space Architecture implemented a parklet in front of its operational headquarters in the Porto-Saragozza neighbourhood, in order to develop some placemaking activities by promoting community engagement, creating cross-disciplinary learning spaces and engaging an intergenerational audience and different social groups, with special attention to the elderly and young people.

A parklet is a public space, for non-profit purposes and open to all, it can be used for free for events and initiatives for the neighbourhood.

Activities

As a response to the pandemic, CSA got involved in a local project named “Strade Aperte” (Open Streets), initiated by a number of Bologna-based grassroots organizations together with architects and designers, in order to suggest small-scale projects to reclaim the public land for greener, pedestrian-friendly and socially inclusive purposes. CSA’s parklet was included in the list of actions of “Strade Aperte” to be presented to the Municipality.

Regrettably, the process of obtaining a permit of the local government, even with the support of the “Strade Aperte” project, took a long time (from May to September 2020). After overcoming several obstacles, we received the permission to implement the parklet for just two months, from September 30th to November 30th. It was difficult for the Municipality of Bologna to understand the social value of the parklet, its non-profit character and its capacity to reshape public land with a more innovative and alternative function than being a parking for cars, especially in terms of giving more space for physical distancing. In order to use the parking space, CSA had to pay a fee like any other commercial activity would do. In conclusion, the design and implementation of the parklet required more time, energies and financial resources than expected.

Since the opening of the parklet, on October 4th, we set up a communication strategy to inform other associations and art institutions in the neighbourhood about the initiative, also through social media (in particular on Facebook posting in several groups managed by local residents) and organized a series of cultural and artistic events in the parklet and the surrounding streets during October and November 2020.

At the beginning of November, new restrictions imposed by the Italian government, due to a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, made it impossible to organize other outdoor activities.

CSA has managed to extend the permanence of the parklet in Via Curiel from December 1st until May 31st 2021. Thus, the new public space will be available and operative for upcoming placemaking actions and preparatory activities for the first edition of the film festival Urban Visions in 2021. However, it is worth to mention that the Municipality has granted this extension only after payment of a fee for the occupation of the land.

In May 2021, City Space Architecture applied to the Municipality of Bologna in order to extend the duration of the parklet for additional two months, ending on July 31.

Objectives

The planned activities will contribute to achieve the following objectives of A-Place:  

• To develop and apply creative placemaking practices, through meetings, workshops, art-based interventions and temporary transformation of space, fostering imagination and expanding knowledge on the importance of public space in urban contexts. The activities will contribute to foster solidarity, cooperation and trust among people from diverse cultural origins and to approach notions of identity and belonging from a multidisciplinary perspective.