CityLife, Milano

CityLife's public park, the third largest in the city of Milan, is an integral part, as well as the connective tissue, of the ambitious Masterplan with which Citylife has transformed the large quadrangle of the former trade fairgrounds, an urban area of approximately 350,000 square metres with 173,000 square metres of green space. It was born from an international design competition to create a public space that would be both a 'sustainable park', a 'symbolic park' and a 'connection park'. The park is part of developing a high-end shopping district with 100 shops and 7 cinemas, integrated with the artistic, cultural and leisure proposals, the existing urban layouts and the work and residential needs, all of which are accommodated within CityLife.

The landscape design is closely related to the architecture, echoing the tensions and forms of the towers. The Podium takes up the twisting movement of Zaha Hadid's tower, with the pathways and paving patterns drawn in the same way as ripples formed in water moved by a body coming into contact with it.

The topographies create different perspectives of the surroundings, just as in the great traditional landscape parks. The terrain's morphology draws the composition's guidelines and generates ever different landscape areas while giving the complex a unique identity. The design of the vegetation emphasises the presence of different types of 'nature'; the wooded strips with tall shrubs give rhythm to the park, offering a varied experience to be discovered along the crossing paths, from the green parterre to the large clearing, the park's true breath of fresh air. They also crown the park's perimeter to preserve its uniqueness and screen it from city traffic. The trees are arranged in groves or scattered along the lawns to produce a refreshing play of projected shadows. As in nature, trees of different sizes have been used to create woods with mature individuals and others less so. Large oaks, maples and elms, and multi-stemmed trunk shapes enhance the impression of spontaneity of the environment. These are interspersed with large patches of herbaceous perennials and grasses that brighten the summer and autumn colours.

The development of this project, from the preliminary definition to that necessary to obtain the authorisations, as well as the concrete realisation, has been characterised by its complexity in its interfaces with the various architectural and engineering designs of underground and non-underground works, such as the metro line 5, the underground road system with its parking garages, plate structures, shopping centre and the three skyscrapers by architects Hadid, Libeskind and Isozaki. Large areas of parkland are located above underground works that have imposed the meticulous study of technical stratigraphies suitable to accommodate the cultivation of plant species while respecting the constraints posed by the underlying structures. The programme is characterised by complete car separation, and pedestrian flows through a specific underground roadway with dedicated parking spaces. The park includes large paved areas at the foot of the skyscrapers, around the shopping centre, and areas equipped for children's play, dog walking, and fitness. The green areas connect morphologically and compositionally the different heights of the existing urban fabric with that of the Tre Torri square, the shopping centre and the pavilions of Milano Congressi.

The private garden of Daniel Libeskind's residences is the centralising place of the residential intervention for the Citylife subdivision; it is an intimate space, protected by the buildings themselves, and emphasises its inclination to be a junction thanks to its hilly configuration. The location in a strongly urbanised context such as Milan has made it necessary to seek a distinctly natural value. The project is structured in three areas: the hanging ring that embraces the buildings, the pedestrian loop that allows people to walk around the central garden, and finally, the central hill connected to the loop by three bridges. The three environments with different vocations relate through the uniformity of the plant treatment and the distribution logic, guaranteeing a homogeneous perception of the entire intervention.