From place’s to project identity: heritage as regeneration framework

Responding to the challenges of the contemporary city requires a design approach capable of interpreting the needs of the post-metropolis, while enhancing its resources. The identification of the cultural and heritage elements of a territory —both tangible and intangible— allows for the creation of a historical framework that serves both as a structural foundation and a strategic tool for urban regeneration. As a structure, it embodies the memory and identity of places; as a tool, it offers a resource to be reinterpreted through design. The paper presents the initial findings of the research project TE.ST for the Future: Regeneration and Adaptation of the Historical Frames of the Contemporary City. The reactivation of the palimpsests of the historical territory, carried out by the PDTA Department of Sapienza University of Rome (2023-2024). Through a theoretical-experimental approach, the study developed the concept of the historical framework and applied it to three Italian case studies: two in Rome and one in Verona. In these cities, historical components—such as railways, water networks, fortifications, districts, and buildings—are analysed as systemic and structural invariants, forming the basis for qualitative redevelopment projects aimed at enhancing public spaces and surrounding environments. The study highlights the regenerative potential of existing heritage, that can activate multi-scale, multi-actor, and multi-dimensional processes, rebalancing urban contexts.