Luigi Aiello: “Un progetto ambizioso, in principio considerato un problema, ma oggi un’iniziativa forte che si fonda sulla creazione di valore per l’intera comunità”
The Spazio MIL hall in Sesto San Giovanni was the venue for an event organized on June 29 by Hines, Cale Street, Prelios and Milanosesto for the community and everyone wanting to know more about Unione 0, the first private lot that is to be developed in MilanoSesto, in northern Milan, the largest urban regeneration project in Italy and one of the most important in Europe.
Unione 0, the focus of the event, will be developed thanks to the investment completed at the beginning of the year by Hines, an international real estate player, together with Cale Street, a real estate investment company supported by the Kuwait Investment Office, the London office of the Kuwait Investment Authority and the world’s first sovereign fund, established in 1953, through the contribution of the lot, by Milanosesto S.p.A., to the newly formed “Unione 0” real estate fund, managed by Prelios SGR.
The event was also attended by the Mayor of Sesto San Giovanni, Roberto Di Stefano, and the representatives of the three main promoters of MilanoSesto, who expressed their satisfaction with the intention behind the organization of the presentation.
Luigi Aiello, general manager for corporate & business development at the Prelios Group, commented: “Presenting Unione 0 to the community has given me a double sense of satisfaction. First because we are taking concrete steps to achieve our interpretation of a living style that is modern, sustainable, accessible and built around the needs of the individual. And, no less important, because MilanoSesto is taking concrete shape: an ambitious project, initially seen as a problem, is now a robust initiative centered in primis on the creation of value for the whole community. The project is a further demonstration that the courage, cohesion and professionalism of the players involved, Prelios, Hines and Intesa Sanpaolo, together with a long-term vision supported by the authorities, is the key to achieving great objectives.”
Mario Abbadessa, senior managing director & country head di Hines Italy said: “Unione 0, and the whole MilanoSesto project of which it is part, are driven by the desire to create a place for the community, a broadly based inclusive project that also meets the needs of the people who already live in Sesto San Giovanni. At Hines, every project we follow is considered a success only if it is sustainable not only environmentally and economically, but above all socially. So, with the support and trust of Cale Street, our investor in the Unione 0 development, every day we try to listen more closely to residents, schools, local associations, as well as shopkeepers and other professionals in the areas where we operate, because it is this dialogue that gives us a real understanding of the current and future needs of the generations who are and will be living in the area. This is what we are working on, in the hope of involving growing numbers of different opinions and ambitions as we wanted to do this evening.”
“The presentation of the first MilanoSesto lot to the Sesto San Giovanni community is a moment of pride for all of us who have been working on the project for years, with dedication and commitment. Together with our partners Hines and Prelios, we have finally provided tangible evidence of the progress achieved and the steps that over the next few years will make Unione 0 and MilanoSesto a place that can transform the story of the former Falck site into a real opportunity for the future and also enhance a very important historical legacy,” said Luciano Carbone, ceo of Milanosesto S.p.A.
The June 29 presentation was an interesting experience for all the guests, thanks to the program organized to interpret the values and the main characteristics of Unione 0, together with the fascinating details provided by the various speakers over the course of the evening.
Among a series of installations interpreting the theme of Nature a route lined by green plants led the guests into the main hall, where they saw a preview of some examples of creativity with the fences soon to be erected around the building site placed in a wall covered by vertical kitchen gardens. Interaction and engagement with the guests extended from the venue itself to their return home. A large installation of messages on paper cards made from seed paste was set up. The guests were invited to take the tickets home and sow the seeds, and then keep the plant until it can be transferred to Unione 0.
The Unione 0 event also included an informal presentation involving some of the many professionals who have been working for months on the realization of the first MilanoSesto lot. A round table introduced the project from the viewpoint of the architects who are translating their ideas for the new district into drawings and will then gradually follow its construction as work begins by the end of the year. The architects are Park Associati, who will develop a 700-bed student housing complex, the architecture and interior design firm ACPV ARCHITECTS Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel, involved in the design of offices and a hotel, Barreca & La Varra, who will design social housing, and Scandurra Studio Architettura, who are working on open-market housing. Development of the first portion of the park – 13 hectares out of a total of 45 hectares – has been assigned to LAND. The professionals from the firms illustrated their visions of the project, the connections planned among the buildings and between the buildings and the existing spaces, where the concept of public-private osmosis will play a key role, while the re-naturalization of the area will be a cornerstone of Unione 0 and the project as a whole.
Davide Rampello, past president of Milan Triennale, university lecturer and artistic director of Rampello & Partners Creative Studio examined another crucial issue for Unione 0 and MilanoSesto: the fulcrum for the development of the project are people and their needs, and the intention is to re-create an open, inclusive and integrated community, in line with the interests of future generations. Rampello talked about relations with the existing community, the first steps planned to put the people who will live in the new area center stage, and the initiatives already set up with local associations who curate the legacy and history of the site. A dialogue on the importance of connections among people and giving space to their stories, which also raised awareness of the importance of inter-generational relations. During the discussion, the guests were offered a preview of “Vita Nuda”, a documentary by Rampello on local inhabitants’ memories, which will be shown in August at the 2022 Rimini Meeting, where MilanoSesto will be present. An exceptional contribution came from the students of the AFOL Metropolitana catering school, which handled the refreshments at the event: a first tangible example of involvement of the community and the desire to set up quality projects that promote mutual growth.
