Nuova Casa Sociale per l’abitato di Caltron

The building that hosts the new community centre in Caltron addresses the delicate task of being in harmony with an environment that serves as a boundary between the village and the agricultural landscape. The main goal is that of integrating it with both the exiting historical buildings and the unfolding countryside that shapes the entire rural landscape of this side of the Val di Non. The critical reading of these two systems, the willingness to conceive a work that is an expression of our time and the current need to erect sustainable buildings, are the cornerstones of this project. The new building presents a simple design and nests naturally into the ground. The difficulties associated with the topography and geometry of the area are used as resources to manage the integration of the building into the ground and to ensure an easy access to all its storeys. The main volume, which lies on a solid base that integrates seamlessly into the ground, is compact and well-proportioned to ensure continuity with the town urban fabric by becoming part of the landscape and integrating into the succession of apple trees in an attempt to become, over time, a pre-existence familiar to the residents. The new community centre of Caltron is also the outcome of a knowledge-sharing and participatory process that engaged residents and the local government. The project is the result of an invitation-only competition organised by the Municipality of Cles in 2012 and addressed to professionals under the age of 35 living in the Val di Non. The goal was to promote the activity of local young architecture firms. The winning project was then presented and discussed publicly to share the planning choices and, prior to its final drafting, was changed based on some demands brought forward by the population.