Intergenerational dialogues in Milan peripheries. A research by design applied to via Padova

This article presents some critical considerations developed at the end of a Politecnico di Milano urban design studio carried out between February and July 2019, as part of the teaching experimentation platform “Ri-formare Periferie Milano Metropolitana”2 (Re-forming Milan peripheries) created to promote research by design on the regeneration of peripheral areas. As architects, we consider the design activity as a form of applied research3, to be tested with the students based on precise research questions. The brief of the design studio was developed based on our interest in the relationships between social issues, linked to the aging of the population (mainly in Italy), and new forms of urban life based on intergenerational dialogue. For pedagogical reasons, it was decided not to consider the determining factors in urban planning, such as land and other form of ownership, urban density, economic values, urban mobility plans, to offer students greater project freedom, while forcing them to reason every decision based on direct observation of places and social customs. The aim was not to respond to the immediate problems of everyday life of young and old inhabitants with building projects, but to imagine visionary scenarios of life in the Milan peripheries, prioritizing the design of articulated buildings and public spaces system. This research project refers to the area of Via Padova, a road that extends from Piazzale Loreto for about 4 km in a north-easterly direction to Cascina Gobba. Via Padova crosses heterogeneous urban fabrics resulting from a historical stratification due to the historical centers of Turro, Gorla, and Crescenzago. These were initially autonomous municipalities and are now fully incorporated into the urban structure. Despite its differences, the area crossed by Via Padova has long been presented as socially problematic, as it is characterized by significant conflicts related to the strong presence of foreign populations. It is an example of multiculturalism in Milan, with more than 80 different countries of origin.