The design approach for the requalification of Marina Grande waterfront in Arenzano aimed to the re-naturalization of old structures built on a pre-existing railway.
In the sixties, the concrete structure invaded the waterfront as an “eco-monster” for a distance of three hundred meters.
In this context, the project upgrades the waterfront of Marina Grande, recreating a correct ratio of natural interaction between the land and the sea. This will be achieved through a new concept of “porous facing” towards the sea: sliding glass layers create greenhouses that create kaleidoscopic effects, produced by the reflection of the sea and the transparency of the inner gardens.
The project emphasizes the relationship between inside and outside, blurring the effect of the threshold between in and out, open and closed, natural and artificial.
The waterfront regeneration of Marina Grande identifies five design actions: removing of the existing “eco-monster”; creation of a new public promenade overlooking the sea (currently there is a path in the tunnel without the sea view) configured to facilitate social interactions, meetings and leisure; revitalization of the existing landscape through the exploitation of the dominant natural features (marine and Mediterranean) and the camouflage with new gardens that link the building to the landscape of the hill behind; creation of new opportunities for public use through activities such as catering, commerce, holiday houses and a bathhouse; definition of specific design energy-environmental strategies aimed to reduce pollutant emissions through the use of bioclimatic greenhouses and thick trees.