Urban Ruins in Inhabited Historic Settlements. A Preliminary Study for Safety Improvement of the Public Spaces of the Granfonte District in Leonforte (Sicily)

This article presents a segment of an ongoing research project on the Granfonte district, the oldest area in the town of Leonforte, located in the heart of inner Sicily. The neighbourhood lies on a steep rocky slope, which has influenced the local architecture and constructive solutions. Traditional houses are examples of essential dwellings, where farm and domestic life are often combined due to the limited space in the urban sites, and today they remain as rare witnesses of vernacular architectures. However, depopulation and city expansion policies since the 1960s have caused the district to become increasingly abandoned, leading to decay in the built fabric. Unfortunately, the local administration has been demolishing dilapidated buildings with no regard for urban quality, thus jeopardizing safety and conservation objectives. In this framework, a part of the research work on the Granfonte quarter focuses on developing a project to revitalize public spaces and urban ruins to regenerate the built environment and ensure safety. The intervention criteria are designed to delay the demolition of ruined buildings by integrating them into public spaces and preserving their architectural integrity with minimal demolitions. The paper outlines the preliminary results of the study, focusing on knowledge of local construction techniques, mapping of unstable elements and situations, and providing general observations regarding guidelines for interventions.