Bergamo. The connection was inaugurated this morning pedestrian path between the bastion of San Giovanni and via Tre Armi, a work promoted and financed by the Parco dei Colli di Bergamo. The path, 3 and a half meters wide and 36 meters long, connects the ancient arched “sortie” present at the foot of the walls at the connection point between the wall where the fire outlets and the bastion’s mullion are present and clearly visible. The new connection represents the first gap, the first connection, between the interior and exterior of the historic fortification through the recovery and valorization of the gunboat located in the bastion of San Giovanni.
The new connection represents a new important pedestrian access point to the Upper Town, also transforming itself into a path of historical, cultural and landscape knowledge, of discovery of a stretch hitherto closed to public use and of further valorisation and usability of the interior of the Cannoniera di San Giovanni, perfectly preserved and part of the Venetian Walls, a UNESCO heritage site. The new pedestrian connection will make it possible to connect in a more direct way and further complete the network of pedestrian paths of the historic “stairs” much loved and frequented by the citizens of Bergamo and by the increasingly numerous tourists. The intervention was possible thanks to Parco dei Colli’s acquisition of a privately owned area at the foot of the bastion, overcoming a situation that until now had prevented its feasibility. The topic had already been addressed several times over the last decades, in 1974 by Sandro Angelini in an annex to the Detailed Plan, in 1987 by the architect Labaa in the project for the recovery of the San Giovanni gunboat, as well as in some degree theses .
Explains Renato Ferlinghetti, member of the Management Council of the Parco dei Colli di Bergamo: “The reopening of the bastion of San Giovanni allows us to observe the internal stratification of the Walls, overcoming the concept that the Walls are not a “wall”, but a complex architectural structure developed on three floors, for a linear development of over five kilometers. This intervention, promoted by the Parco dei Colli di Bergamo, in dialogue with the UNESCO office of the Municipality of Bergamo, the Lombardy Region and the Superintendent, also takes on an important meaning: in a time of environmental, economic and geopolitical crisis, the transformation is interesting of a military structure, such as the gunboat of San Giovanni which is located along Via Tre Armi, in a landscape alive with peace and social cohesion. With this work, Parco dei Colli, a supra-municipal body, stimulates care of the territory, towards an increasingly fruitful relationship between communities and places. The objective is to achieve a new habitability of the planet, one of the founding values of the Bergamo and Brescia Charter of peri-urban protected areas, signed in Valmarina in November 2023, one of the most significant outcomes of Bergamo Brescia Italian Capital of Culture 2023″.
GOALS
The entire Upper Town of Bergamo is within the perimeter of the Parco dei Colli and the intention is to enhance a route between the historic city, inside the Venetian Walls, and the immediately external territory. Through the rampart of San Giovanni, both Via Tre Armi and the Vicolo del Paradiso – Vicolo di S. Grata steps are connected as a single pedestrian path which, from the S. Lucia roundabout, leads directly to the S. John. This intervention, therefore, can constitute a central element with respect to the objective of obtaining an integrated system of pedestrian paths inside and outside the wall circuit, which includes ladders, embrasures, sections of walkway at the foot of the Walls, the ring path above the Walls, the internal streets of the Upper Town that lead to the architecture of historical interest.
The area subject to intervention concerns a portion of the green belt of approximately 170 square meters of surface area adjacent to the Venetian Walls, at the foot of the Baluardo di San Giovanni which from Via delle Tre Armi reaches the exit of the Baluardo, adjacent to the curtain wall. The specific constraints of the intervention site with which the project had to deal concerned first of all the significant difference in height between the street level of Via delle Tre Armi and the arrival level of the Baluardo di San Giovanni sortie. The difference in altitude is approximately 4.80 m and the total length of the route is approximately 36 m. There is also a difference in height of approximately 50 cm between the street level of Via delle Tre Armi and the intervention lot determined by the presence of a stone wall delimiting the portion of land in question.
The project consists of three simple detailed elements represented by: creation of the pedestrian path connecting via Tre Armi and the gate of the sortie, creation of a delimitation element between the public accessibility path and the adjacent private property, paving of the pedestrian path.
The pedestrian connection consists of an inclined and paved path that allows you to reach the gunboat exit of the Baluardo di San Giovanni from via delle Tre Armi and vice versa. The route is separated from the adjacent lot with a dividing element with a height of approximately 180 cm at via Tre Armi, partially recessing into the ground at the exit where there is already a steep natural slope of approximately 130 cm which connects the elevation of the exit to that of the green area above. The fence is made up of natural iron profiles arranged side by side at a constant distance of 160 mm between them, interspersed with a metal mesh which has the function of containing the soil and allowing micro-vegetation to grow between one element and another. The flooring is also made up of iron elements, alternating with dry-laid stone elements. All these elements are characterized by interstitial grassing, the width of the walkway is variable, to accommodate the sinuous geometry of the foot of the Walls.
OPENINGS AND SPECIAL EVENTS
The opening and closing of the Cannoniera di San Giovanni is possible thanks to the “PanoramaMura” project created by the Bergamo History Museum, in agreement with the Municipality of Bergamo and its UNESCO Secretariat. From Saturday 22 June, in addition to the upper access to the Cannoniera, it will also be possible to enter from the ancient exit of via Tre Armi.
On the occasion of the opening of the new passage the Museum organized two special guided tours: from Porta San Giacomo to the Cannoniera di San Giovanni two walks along Via Tre Armi to admire the imposing beauty of the Bergamo Fortress from a different perspective. Appointments on 7 July and 1 September (bookings on www.ticketlandia.com). Access to the Cannoniera is regulated according to the following times: Saturday, Sunday and holidays from 11am to 5pm. Access will be possible for 15 people at a time every 10 minutes.
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