SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF INTERMEDIATE RURAL AREAS WITH LOW POPULATION DENSITY

Objectives The reuse of agricultural production buildings (in this case a former tobacco drying kiln) even though from a technical standpoint does not present particular problems, can be challenging from a financial point of view. On the other hand, such action may have important effects on the territory, relating to the landscape and cultural-historical aspects. It can also be place and occasion to create new economic opportunities in rural inland areas characterized by agricultural activity, which is still important in terms of population devoted to it. The development of a thematic itinerary is thus the functional and operational element that can enhance the reuse of former dryer kilns. Methods Aim of this study is the design and reuse of agricultural production buildings now obsolete, and therefore no longer used, which were once used as premises for drying tobacco. These operations should be carried out in accordance with the traditional architectural features of the buildings and are aimed to the conception, and subsequent activation, of an itinerary called “la Via del Tabacco” (The Tobacco’s Route) based on the priority theme of the recovery of the bond between man and territory. Several buildings (n. 6 dryer kilns) were considered to assure the functionality the entire path. Results The results of the study thus consist in the drafting of a project concerning the reuse of buildings otherwise subject to abandonment and consequent degradation; the creation of an itinerary, “la Via del Tabacco” (The Tobacco’s Route) management of the infrastructures adjacent to the considered buildings that constitute the road network between them; action devoted to the promotion and public acknowledgment of the itinerary contents and of the information relevant to its execution and activation.