IMPRINT + : CASE STUDY: VILLA MARGHERITA

Castelvetrano is an Italian town of about 31,761 inhabitants. It is situated on the South-Western coast of Sicily, in the province of Trapani.

BIO-GEOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF THE TERRITORY

The territory of Castelvetrano, geologically young, is made up of a monocline that gradually plunges towards the sea. Its morphology is quite hilly with small slopes, reaching a maximum of 290 metres above sea level to the north of the inhabited area. The territory has plenty of water. The main streams ,that are typically torrential , are Belice, that gives its name to the Valley, Modione and Delia. Since the territory is an agricultural area , the outskirts of the town are intensively cultivated . For this reason it is quite difficult to find natural sites with flora and fauna typical of the Mediterranean insular area. The most common cultivation is the olive tree in its variety called "Nocellara del Belice" used either as table olive or oil. The latter product is recognized as a PDO product and is well-appreciated both in Italy and abroad. Other agricultural products are vineyards, vegetables and wheat.

CASE STUDY: VILLA MARGHERITA

The site we have chosen as a case study for urban recovery is a small garden that overlooks Regina Margherita Square (37°67' North ,12°79' East) from which it takes its name, in the city centre and on the edge of the first historical nucleus.

Regina Margherita Villa occupies a triangular space between two churches, St. Dominic Church (the oldest of the town ,XVth century) and St John Church ( XVIth century ) . In 1871 trees, palms, rubber plants were planted. In 1885 it was embellished with an iron railing and in 1887 a sculptor from Palermo, Mario Rutelli, added a marble group in the centre of a fountain. Unfortunately, during the Second World War the original , iron railing was partially damaged in order to make some cannons , and during the 1968 earthquake that destroyed the Belice Valley, the garden was used as a shantytown for the homeless . Rutelli sculpture was restored by Professor Benedetto Risalvato and it was put at the entrance to the Selinus Theatre while a copy of it was located in its original place, these days vandalized and degraded. Our recovery project includes a botanical study to identify any problems with the trees ; an intervention on them to remove molds and other infections; cleaning of flower beds and restoration of the sculpture called "Bambocciata".

Images referring to the first site visit to Margherita Villa that took place on 26th February, 2016 with the whole staff and with the expert in Forestry and Environmental Sciences, Doctor Cirabisi.