Via Pirelli is a strategic route in Milan, leading from the Central Station to Gioia, thus connecting two key spots of the urban regeneration that transformed the city during the last 80 years.
In 1931 the new Central Station building had been completed, shifted towards north-east in comparison with the old station, in this way making room for the square which is today Piazza della Repubblica.
In 1950 Gio Ponti designed the Pirelli Tower, which took the place of the old Pirelli factory and was inaugurated in 1961. The tower remained for many years the tallest skyscraper in Italy, the symbol of the renewed "pact" between Italian entrepreneurs and architects. In 1978 the Lombardy Region acquired the building and transferred there its headquarters.
In 1953, the City Master Plan suggested the creation of a new business district, concentrating in this area tertiary functions and mobility infrastructures such as the Porta Garibaldi Railway Station and Gioia metro station. During the following years along viale Melchiorre Gioia axis found place a tower dedicated to Milan municipality services and the new Palazzo Lombardia (nearly completed), a 161m skyscraper designed by Ieoh Ming Pei where will be localized the operational headquarters of the Lombardy regional administration. The recent massive Porta Nuova redevelopment, between Piazza della Repubblica and Porta Garibaldi Railway Station, is one of the two main transformation areas in Milan: here brand new towers provide contemporary residential and tertiary spaces, along with a new public park and commercial facilities.
In this frenzy context, a private developer held an invited competition to design a mixed use building (residential and commercial) on a lot of 2.500 sqm, located between Via Pirelli and Via Adda, and close to Gioia metro station.
The special guidelines, defined after an agreement between the City council and the private developer, required to design a building with maximum 12.000 sqm of gross floor area (10.000 sqm residential and 2.000 sqm commercial), with a maximum height related to the buildings facing the lot, with a portion of the residential surface that had to be allocated to social housing. Other pre-conditions were to maintain the six underground parking levels already constructed and to provide carriageable access from Via Adda.
The lot is located where Via Pirelli slightly bends, thus appearing as a focal point both for those coming from Pirelli and Gioia.
The residential program has been divided into two parts: the main one facing Via Pirelli and its monumental character, the second and lower one facing Via Cornalia and Via Adda, dealing with a more intimate condition.
The main part is a large slab, 59 meters wide and 14 meters deep (approx. 750 sqm per floor), 14 floors high off the ground. Its shape follows the bend of Via Pirelli, thinning towards Gioia. The distribution system with two stairwells allows adequate flexibility and variable sizes to the units, guaranteeing to every apartment a comfortable terrace facing south.
The facade system is independent from the distribution layout: a grid of sliding precast concrete panels 320 cm high, available in five modules, permits to modulate the quality of light and to screen the interiors, as well as easily adapt the facade design in case of changes in the inner layout.
The lower residential L-shaped volume has two accesses and a linear distribution system screened by a U-glas wall, that forms one of the facades of the introverted commercial raised square located between the two residential volumes.
The first two floors are intended for commercial use: the ground floor has showcases and accesses on three sides, directly from the road; the first floor is served by an open air gallery between the two residential units, resulting in a lively extension of the public square along Via Pirelli and accessible through a ramp that allows to smoothly move between the two levels.
The facades of the L-shaped building, punctuated by cantilevered balconies, maintain proportions comparable with those of the buildings facing Via Adda and Via Cornalia.
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