In the village of Polcanto (near Florence) many shops and services useful to people have been closed in recent years. Its school is also suffering from neglect. The following project proposes its transformation into a socio-cultural centre that can meet the needs of the community. There are no places that offer meeting opportunities for young people, adults and the elderly. The postal service has been closed. The library is absent. The former classrooms of the school are the ideal place to host these activities and organise various events: festivals, markets, cinema, etc. The spaces on the upper floor, on the other hand, are ideal rooms for the development of modern and traditional handicraft activities, historically typical of small rural villages.

Outside

The garden is the first place we encounter in the building. I thought to include a relaxation corner, children's games and a corner for the community cultivation of fruit trees, herbs and aromatic spices. This will be useful to attract the attention and interest of various age groups and to ensure that as many people as possible attend the socio-cultural centre.

Corridor/ Mini art gallery

The first space we encounter inside the building is a long corridor that I thought could become a mini art gallery, whose walls will permanently house photos that recall the historical memory of the village. These can then be temporarily replaced for the display of works by artists who wish to exhibit inside the building.

Multi-purpose room 1

The first multi-purpose room on the first floor has been designed to accommodate static and quiet activities, such as reading and studying. There is a large table that can be used for group tasks, research or meetings. There is also a sofa for reading, shelves to accommodate books and then create a small community library, a printer with self-printing service and a desk with computer where you can provide various services (payments, reservations, etc.). with the support of an operator.

Multi-purpose room 2

The second multipurpose room is designed for noisy and dynamic activities. In the room there is a kitchen, a screen for screenings, two armchairs and several tables. Therefore, the room lends itself to hosting workshops, film forums or simply people who want to meet on cold winter afternoons. It can also be used for community or private initiatives.

Scrubbing service

From the anteroom of the toilets on the ground floor I obtained a small scrubbing service consisting of a single washing machine and two dryers (more used as less present in the houses than the washing machine). The people of the village use the scrubbing services but to do so they have to go to the towns circconstants, so I thought it useful to include this service that connects historically to the act of washing clothes as an action that promotes sociability between people. In this way the inhabitants of the village will frequent the structure also for necessity and not only in moments of leisure. The reduced number of household appliances corresponds to the reduced number of residents.

Laboratories

The spaces of the first floor will be transformed into laboratories that will host freelancers of various types. In this case I imagined myself: ceramic workshop, coworking designer, workshop for woodworking, tailoring and leather goods.