Historical center paving

Location: Lugano, city center

Design: 2011-2012

Construction: 2012-2013

Architecture Studio: Buletti Fumagalli & Associati, Lugano and Gianfranco Rossi, Lugano

Architect: Mauro Buletti
Collaborator: Giorgio Rezzonico

Engineering Studio: Mantegazza & Cattaneo, Lugano

The intervention was part of the redevelopment and extension project for the pedestrian zone in the core of Lugano and the urban design in natural stone for streets and squares in the historical center, carried out in successive phases since 1987.

The concepts, criteria, and materials previously applied elsewhere also apply to Via Peri, Via Sempione, and Via Ariosto. The road surface is made of porphyrite, emphasizing the spatial continuity and paths that branch out and intersect with similar characteristics. At the junction of Via Peri and Salita Chiattone, the paving of the small square is designed with a perimeter of gneiss slabs, inside which the surface is made of pink porphyry cubes, similar to the staircase leading to the upper part of the city.

Via Peri, with its uniform porphyrite surface, connects to Piazza Dante and, at its northern end, concludes the pedestrian path that leads from Piazza della Riforma towards Corso Pestalozzi, beyond which the city, its spaces, and its architecture change. The design of this gateway at Via Peri is made with a square of gneiss slabs featuring a central white marble slab. A double central trace in gneiss also characterizes Via Peri, Via Sempione, and Via Ariosto.

The entire Via Peri is marked by the presence of gneiss bollards, intended to delineate the space available for vehicles during the hours when their access is permitted.

At the junction of Via Sempione and Via Ariosto, a large circle is marked on the road surface to unify the different road geometries and to geometrically define the last section of Via Ariosto towards Via Pretorio.