CENTRO GIOVANILE A BALESTRATE
Renovation of a building confiscated from mafia and converted in a youth center
Client: Municipality of Balestrate – PON SICUREZZA 2007/2013
Team: AM3 architetti associati
Location: Balestrate (PA), Italy
Year: 2015
Project status: completed
Photo: Mauro Filippi
The building was confiscated from a local Mafioso and transferred to the Municipality of Balestrate. It was renovated thanks to funding under the national ‘Operational Program for Security’, with the intent to convert it into a centre for young people. Creating a youth centre in a building that was confiscated from the Mafia, in a local area with significant Mafia presence, is of great symbolic meaning. Thus, the youth centre intends to host activities aiming to promote and disseminate the culture of lawfulness in order to increase young people’s awareness about legality, equality, respect, and democracy, and help prevent them from going astray.
The recovery of the building has led to the creation of spaces for artistic, musical and theatrical laboratories, exhibition halls and conference rooms. Recently the youth centre has been assigned to six local associations to promote the culture of legality through group activities.
CONDIVIDI