Preliminary Feasibility Studies Aimed at Greening Strategies for the Urban Regeneration. The Case Study of the Monte Po District

This paper is part of a research project that aims to define an integrated framework for analyzing and evaluating basic scenarios for possible greening and urban regeneration projects. These projects aim to improve aspects such as climate, health and well-being, aesthetics, environmental conditions, safety, technology, and innovation development. The strategy adopted in this research focuses on prioritizing building-scale interventions, particularly involving public structures and facilities of collective interest within specific urban areas and districts. In the literature, there are several examples of greening systems integrated into the building envelope (horizontal and vertical enclosures) from the design phase, mainly for new constructions. However, the same cannot be said for existing buildings. In the case of existing buildings, implementing greening systems integrated into the envelope is more complex. It is necessary to develop a preliminary feasibility analysis phase aimed at defining factors such as morphology, volume, construction technologies, material consistency of the building, and the presence or absence of surrounding spaces suitable for planting vegetation. The preliminary feasibility analysis phase aims to identify a set of indicators related to the characteristics of buildings and surrounding spaces in terms of their suitability for greening interventions. These indicators were identified by correlating qualitative and quantitative data, recorded in two types of specifically designed cataloging sheets, with the characteristics of indirect green façade systems. This paper presents the first results obtained from the application of this analysis in a case study focused on the Monte Po public housing district in Catania.