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Located at the junction of the Langano pier with the quay, the new “Torretta” is structured on two floors above ground. Accentuating the horizontality of the building and attenuating its visual and perceptive impact from the city, in terms of form and materials, the building has been strongly inspired by nautical design. The whole building has been conceived as a light boat sailing in the centre of the body of water.
At the heart of the new harbor’s water basin, the newly designed “Torretta” functions as a distinctive landmark for the entire seafront of the city. With its discreet yet recognizable presence, it remains visible from the historic city center, while subtly blending with the surrounding moored vessels. Its integration into the maritime landscape respects the site's character and echoes the genius loci of the waterfront. The architectural gesture is both iconic and contextual, offering a contemporary reinterpretation of traditional nautical elements.
The prominent overhangs of the roof and terraces are clad with panels made of composite aluminium panels, chosen to allow for smooth, curved profiles reminiscent of a ship’s hull. This nautical metaphor guided not only the design of the forms but also the selection of colours and finishes. The translucent surface, in particular, captures and reflects the ever-changing sunlight bouncing off the water’s surface, animating the façade and imbuing the building with a sense of movement, as if it were itself gently floating among the waves. The result is a dynamic architectural expression deeply connected to its maritime context.
The design approach embraces sustainability through careful material selection and construction strategies aimed at durability, efficiency, and environmental responsibility. Lightweight, recyclable solutions such as aluminum composite panels enhance thermal performance and reduce maintenance over time. The project favors versatile, low-impact materials suitable for both indoor and outdoor use, including next-generation composites like WPC, ensuring resistance, longevity, and aesthetic coherence while aligning with broader goals of reducing the building’s ecological footprint.
The new building, named after the original harbor control tower it replaces, redefines the relationship between architecture and the waterfront. Its design emphasizes horizontality and lightness through a fully glazed façade, enhancing transparency and reducing visual impact from land and sea. The structure is organized on two above-ground levels, with carefully distributed volumes that improve spatial usability and open sightlines across the harbor basin. Deep overhangs at roof and terrace levels shape the building’s profile, offering shading and architectural rhythm. Integrated within these overhangs is a retractable fabric screen system positioned on the most sun-exposed façade, allowing dynamic solar control and improving energy performance. Opaque surfaces are clad in WPC, a 100% recyclable composite with strong resistance to marine conditions, evoking a nautical character. A recessed rooftop technical volume accommodates photovoltaic panels, invisible from public views, contributing to the project’s broader sustainability objectives and energy efficiency strategy
