Palazzo Novecento

Palazzo Novecento

1.Impact/Equality

The decision to undertake the LEED for Homes international sustainability certification in 2016 in Italy for a listed residential building was a revolution for the European real estate market. The IPI Group, after the purchase of the property, has promoted its total renovation with an ambitious redevelopment project that has preserved its beauty, updating its functional needs and transforming its intended use from commercial to residential.

2.Design

Palazzo Novecento can boast a double record: it is the first project in Europe to be registered (2016) and certified with the Platinum level (2020) according to the LEED v4 BD+C Multifamily Midrise protocol. Built between 1928 and 1930 by the entrepreneur Riccardo Gualino, designed by architects Pagano and Levi-Montalcini, Palazzo Novecento is considered a masterpiece of Italian Rationalism and is one of the symbolic buildings of the beginning of last century in the city of Turin. Overlooking the wonderful Parco del Valentino, the building, exclusively for residential use, has seven floors above ground and three underground floors, a gross area of about 7,000 sqm and consists of 47 apartments of different sizes. According to the architect Baietto the building encloses in itself a great legacy made of history and values. Every intervention in this building is related to the material of origin, to the consistency of the construction of 1930. Furthermore, in order to respond to the need of parking spaces, very rare in the urban context of Turin, a top-down intervention was made under the building, with the creation of three underground floors used as garages.

3.Sustainability

The choice to pursue the LEED certification protocol has been a great opportunity to complete an extraordinary, choral journey, in which a variety of actors and knowledge, all gathered around the project, shared a single intention: to guarantee the special quality of the final outcome. Macro Design Studio has accompanied the design and construction team in the LEED certification process, through the two key figures of the Homes certification process: the LEED AP Homes and the LEED Green Rater.

4.Health and wellness.

The constant search for the well-being and health of the built spaces has led to preferring the use of low-emitting and environmentally preferable materials, optimizing the performance of the building envelope and systems, reducing energy and water consumption and ensuring the durability of the building product, as well as carrying out the necessary on-site visits. The airtightness and the compartmentalization of each individual accommodation have been tested through the Blower Door Test and has given positive results, demonstrating the excellent work done both in the design phase, through solutions that combine the historical character, the constraints of a listed building and the high performance of the current canons, and in the construction phase. The project is one of the greatest achievements in the renovation of heritage buildings, the cornerstone for a sustainable transition of the built environment that allows not to consume further soil and to enhance the history of places.