The study conducted by the National Research Council ITC – Institute for Construction Technologies and by the Polytechnic University of Milan DAStU – Department of Architecture and Urban Studies
by Massimo Clemente, Benedetta Ettore, Eleonora Giovene di Girasole, Chiara Nifosì and Fulvia Pinto (*)
Introduction
Ports and cities represent complex and interconnected systems, capable of persisting in their functions and adapting to new global challenges. Historically, Italian ports have developed within urban centers, creating critical issues in planning and integration with the cities. The 2016 port reform (Legislative Decree /2016) introduced the Port System Authorities (AdSP) and supra-territorial planning instruments such as the DPSS and the PRdSP, fostering more integrated governance and sustainable development strategies. The Italian port system has undergone two decisive reforms: in 1994, with the adoption of the landlord model and the introduction of port concessions, and in 2016, with the consolidation of 24 Port Authorities into 16 AdSP, simplifying governance and promoting efficiency, competitiveness, and sustainability.
Port cities today face managing limited spaces, urbanized hinterlands, and sensitive coastal areas. The reform offers opportunities to develop integrated strategies that combine port development and urban quality, fostering the regeneration of obsolete areas into accessible waterfronts, public services, and cultural hubs, and creating widespread benefits for local communities. Strategic investments, such as those from the PNRR, support environmental sustainability, social inclusion, technological innovation, and the creation of green infrastructure, promoting a shared approach among the port, city, and territory.
Integrated urban-port development models
Italian ports have often specialized in siloed compartments, separating communities from maritime culture and tangible and intangible heritage. Opening the port to the city means restoring visibility to this heritage and involving communities in the management of spaces, creating a shared identity and new socio-cultural opportunities. Overcoming the historical boundaries between port and city requires operational, political, and design flexibility. Co-planning becomes essential: it is not enough to place port and urban plans side by side, a structured coordination between AdSP, municipalities, regions, and stakeholders is needed, overcoming regulatory and cultural obstacles.
Marginal or degraded areas can be transformed into regeneration spaces with mixed functions, soft mobility, culture, and public services, following principles similar to the “15-minute city” model. These interventions create new urban nodes, overcome the dichotomy between the operational port and the experiential city, and promote widespread and inclusive centralities. The main challenge, therefore, concerns the cultural capacity to redefine the urban-port space, integrating different times, functions, and interests into a sustainable and participatory model.
Today, various Italian port cities – including Trieste, Genoa, Taranto, Livorno, and Catania – are experimenting with innovative approaches to reconcile economic growth, urban quality, and environmental sustainability.
The case analysis, initiated from the seminar “Port Clusters in Transition” (organized in 2025 in Milan by the CNR’s ITC and the Politecnico di Milano’s DAStU), examines tools and projects through six key criteria: port-city integration, sustainability, co-planning, collaborative governance, innovation, and cultural enhancement. Challenges and opportunities emerge, outlining the contours of a more effective urban-port governance.
Italian experiences of port-city integration
The analysis of Italian port clusters followed four phases: selection of case studies; study of documentation (urban plans, masterplans, AdSP reports); construction of an evaluation matrix based on six criteria: integrated sustainability, collaborative governance, heritage enhancement, co-planning, socio-economic integration, culture and creativity; comparison between the case studies.
•Trieste: The redevelopment of the Servola Steelworks, decommissioned in 2020, represents an emblematic case of urban-port regeneration. The project involves the creation of the “green spine”, a linear park running along the border between the port and the city, transforming abandoned industrial areas into accessible and usable public spaces. The intervention integrates pedestrian and cycle paths, sports areas, green zones, and industrial archaeology, contributing to urban cohesion and quality of life. At the same time, it enhances productive activities compatible with environmental sustainability, promoting innovative models of port development. The project also aims to strengthen the cultural identity of the area, creating new meeting and socialization places for the community.
•Savona: The 2022 DPSS introduced a co-planning approach, with the active involvement of local communities and institutions. Particular attention was dedicated to the connection between the Lanterna and the Old Port, a strategic path for the urban accessibility of the waterfront. Disused port buildings are being redeveloped with cultural, tourist, and commercial functions, promoting spatial permeability and the continuity of soft mobility. The integrated GIS platform allowed for the analysis of the current state of infrastructure, the evaluation of alternative scenarios, and the development of a masterplan shared with local authorities, with the aim of reconciling port operational needs and public usability.
•Taranto: The port of Taranto contends with a heavy industrial and environmental legacy. Urban-port regeneration is based on the concept of “Social License to Operate”, which promotes the social acceptance of port projects and activities. The waterfront has been redesigned to accommodate public spaces, pedestrian and cycle paths, connections between the port and the city, and the new Multifunctional Services Center offers services for both citizens and passengers. The initiative fosters the enhancement of local resources and the cultural reappropriation of port spaces, creating a bridge between the community and the port.
•Catania: The PRP of the port of Catania includes the redevelopment of the northern areas near the historic center, with a multifunctional terminal open to the city, intended for tourism and passenger flows. The design includes a buffer zone to reduce the impact of port activities on the urban fabric and an underground route for traffic, ensuring safety and accessibility.
The city’s masterplan integrates progressive phases: from the spontaneous activation of public spaces, to the gradual transformation of port areas, up to the relocation of railway tracks, with the aim of returning the coastline to the community and strengthening resilience, regeneration, and local identity.
•/Piombino: In the Northern Tyrrhenian Sea cluster, the new DPSS introduces the concept of “city-port influence areas”. In Livorno, the restoration of the Old Fortress’s connection to water and the creation of a Port Center within the historic walls demonstrate how heritage and port functionality can coexist. In Piombino, the redevelopment of the seafront and the maritime station aims to improve connections with the urban center and create new public, cultural, and tourist spaces. The Pilots’ Tower project, inspired by Tuscan watchtowers, represents an example of integration between historical identity and modern functions, hosting port services and spaces open to the city.
These examples show how port-city integration can occur through infrastructural, environmental, and landscape regeneration, with strong attention to sustainability, community participation, and the creation of new public and cultural spaces. The common strategy is to transform interface areas from marginal zones to vibrant urban nodes, with mixed functions, pedestrian and cycle connections, public services, and the enhancement of local heritage, strengthening the cohesion between port, city, and community.
DPSS and PRP have opened new possibilities for concerted and integrated planning, but implementation still presents critical issues: co-planning often remains formal, the dialogue between AdSP and municipalities is fragmented, and public participation is limited. The “publicness” of port-city areas is central: regeneration must promote accessibility, inclusivity, and shared identity. Strengthening collaborative governance, co-planning practices, and active citizen involvement is essential to build more open, resilient, and competitive port cities, capable of facing the challenges of the dual global transition and contributing to sustainable and European urban-port development.
(*) the authors:Massimo Clemente, National Research Council ITC – Institute for Construction Technologies, Benedetta Ettorre National Research Council ITC – Institute for Construction Technologies, Eleonora Giovene di Girasole National Research Council ITC – Institute for Construction Technologies, Chiara Nifosì Politecnico di Milano DAStU – Department of Architecture and Urban Studies, Fulvia Pinto, Politecnico di Milano DAStU – Department of Architecture and Urban Studies
