Ferrovie e patrimonio industriale

In 1919, in the area called “Bottenighi”, on the margins of the lagoon in front of the Maritime Port, extension works of the Venice port began, based upon the 1917 Convention among the State, Municipality and Giuseppe Volpi’s industrial and financial group. Successively a regulating plan and implementation project were drawn up whereby the new port would be articulated into four sectors: port and industrial area, commercial port, small oil port and new urban district. This event marked the history of 20th century Venice, not only from an industrial point of view but also social, economical, urban and environmental. But the history of Marghera Port did not have a merely local impact: it was developed from a complex ensemble of choices and financial, political and industrial interests and represented a fundamental part in Italian industrial history. Especially in the years of its affirmation – from 1930 to 1940 – but also in the 50s expansion phase, the industrial area reflected the rapid transformations in the national economic-political situation and all those characteristics established both between political clauses and the industrial world as well as public financing and private interests. The site is still at the centre of age-old discussions upon the prospective of reuse, recovery and transformation of an ever increasing number of disused areas.

L'articolo analizza le rimanenze della ferrovia nelle città e nei piccoli centri, il rapporto fra cultura e industria nella storia dei trasporti, l'architettura delle stazioni, la stazione come elemento urbanistico.