SLOW Aquileia, during and after the pandemic.

A strategic agenda for the re-action and adaptation of a small town

Abstract

The work in progress “SLOW Aquileia. A strategic agenda for re-ACTIVE spaces during and after Covid-19” questions how to cope with structural health, climate and environmental risks through adaptation actions and tools that are specifically tailored to small and low-density urban centers. Aquileia is a town in the Italian region Friuli Venezia Giulia, where the threats to safety, livability and economy brought about by pandemic are not connected to urban concentration, but rather to the fragmentation of public spaces, services and entrepreneurial activities. In this small city, the low population density, the abundance of urban open spaces and the proximity to rural areas have helped limit the number of infections. However, the difficulties in guaranteeing the cultural offer are having serious impacts on the local economy and the municipal finances. To make Aquileia able to re-act to present and future risks, the planning process developed by the Municipality, with the Universities of Trieste, Udine and Iuav of Venezia, focuses on the issues of preparedness and care (of the territory and its inhabitants), and on a deep rethinking of existing facilities. New projects and tools are defined by coordinating slow and fast transformations, tactical and structural interventions. Due to a significant presence of archaeological sites and institutions, the dialogue among territorial actors is no less important. In a post-pandemic perspective, the aim of SLOW Aquileia is to integrate the enhancement of cultural heritage, urban and rural landscapes, with the improvement of the inhabitants’ daily life, through both strong synergies in the ways and times to use public spaces and equipment, and the creation of services in support of new economic chains among creative enterprises, tourism, and local agriculture.