Reclamation landscapes of the Venice Lagoon : the urgency of conservation and reuse of the rural settlement of Le Trezze (Portegrandi)

The hamlet Le Trezze di Quarto d’Altino is situated in the contact area where the mainland gives way to the Venice lagoon. The lagoon is made up of a complex network of land and salt marshes crossed by canals: a physical and environmental system subjected to deep transfor- mation processes both of natural and anthropic origin. The reclamation works carried out by the fascist regime starting from 1927 constitute the last phase of impressive land modification initiated by the Venetian Republic in the 16th century. Along the provincial road running on the left bank of the River Sile, a long row of farmhouses was erected along three kilometres. These houses were part of a linear settlement placed between the canal Taglio del Sile and the lagoon, at the edges of the large reclamation area. The rhetoric of the regime is reflected in the propagandistic names of the houses, referring to the position (Sile House); the productivity of the soil (Florid House, Fertile House, Fecund House, Favourite House); the land reclamation (Resurrected House, Hope House); the politi- cal propaganda (Rebirth House, Redeemed House, Victory House, Imperial House). The building typologies comply with three recurring solutions, taking into account the num- ber of hosted families and the activities performed. The settlement was designed in stylis- tic continuity with the Venetian rural architectural tradition but it was built with advanced techniques. In fact, the houses are exemplary of an important moment of transition from traditional construction methods to one based on the use of materials and techniques typi- cal of industrial production. Since the 1960s, due to the increasing attractiveness of the industrial complexes in the region, the whole area has been abandoned by its inhabitants. Nowadays, in the total absence of policies of landscape enhancement, this modern rural building heritage which carries a controversial historical memory for the country is gradually degrading.