Ex Umberto I

Site Description

At the time of the Serenissima, the area, located in the Cannaregio district at the northern end of the historic centre, was a place dedicated to military training. Since then it is known as the precinct of the former Umberto I Children’s Hospital and comprises a group of buildings accessed from Fondamenta Riformati. The children’s hospital was built at the end of the
19th century and subsequently dedicated to King Umberto I of Savoy in 1901. Since the 1980s, following its decommissioning, the site has been used as a sports facility, a park and also as the headquarters of social institutions, including the Casa dell’Ospitalità di Venezia.

Site Opportunities

The site, which includes the well-established Sant’Alvise sports complex, proximity to the Cà Foscari campus in San Giobbe and the waterbus stop, is strategically positioned with respect to the northern lagoon. Could, therefore, a project consider the theme of innovative housing typology? This could include the creation of low-cost housing, co-housing initiatives and other innovative solutions for contemporary forms of collective living related to accessibility and sporting facilities.