Castelfranco Veneto, Italy
The City
Castelfranco Veneto is a municipality of Veneto, located in Northern Italy, 30 km away from Treviso and approximately 40 km from Venice. The origin of the name of Castelfranco Veneto is the “franco” castle, meaning “free from tax”, a right granted to its first defending inhabitants. The mighty city wall of red bricks was built on a pre-existing earthwork between the end of the 12th and the beginning of the 13th century. Castelfranco Veneto has been a commercial city since its emergence and is tightly woven into the history of the Veneto region.
The population is 33.369 inhabitants, and the municipality area covers a surface of 50,93 sq. km, with a density of 655,2 inhabitants per square kilometer. As in most medium-sized towns of the Veneto region, Castelfranco Veneto is also characterized by a remarkable amount of both public an private urban green, among which the historic garden of Villa Revedin Bolasco stands out for its size and importance. The total surface of green areas (public and private) in the municipality is 3,6 million square meters, around 110 square meters per inhabitant, while the national average is around 32 square meters per inhabitant.
The Pilot: Blue and green areas for citizens wellbeing and health
The Villa Revedin Bolasco is the pilot site. It was erected by Count Francesco Revedin between 1852 and 1865 and designed by Venetian architect, Giambattista Meduna. Instead of going for the typical Italian garden, Count Revedin insisted on making a grand English garden to complement his new villa. In addition to the Meduna, other well-known landscape architects of the time (i.e., Francesco Bagnara, Marc Guignon, and Antonio Caregaro Negrin) provided their contribution. The English garden features a variety of meadows, ponds, hills and tree groups. In the background to the North stands the splendid cavallerizza – a riding arena, crowned by 52 statues in total, with two equestrian statues on top of high stands greeting visitors at the entrance. The garden is guarded by the turret at the West entrance and the turret at the East wall. The garden is internationally known and has received a prize as best Italian garden in 2018.
Villa Revedin Bolasco is owned by the University of Padova (UoP) and has been recently restored. The garden of the Villa borders the main city hospital and a dedicated house for elderly people, as well as an Urban Day Care Centre for people affected by Alzheimer’s disease, which opened in 2016. The municipality of Castelfranco Veneto, along with the University of Padova and Veneto Region, established a local observatory on the “Therapeutic effect of the Landscape”.
Discover the Pilot!
The Visionary Solutions
VS 1 ensured an improved accessibility to the target users of the garden (visitors, elderly people and people with special mobility needs) with new access road to the villa and improvement of the internal paths of the garden to allow a direct, safe and comfortable visit of the Villa Bolasco historic garden.
VS 2 analysed the effects of natural environments on well-being, behaviour and physiological states in elderly and people with dementia, in order to support the design of green spaces and to foster nature-based psychological and clinical interventions. A series of psychological measures such as self-reported questionnaires and cognitive tests were conducted, and complemented by behavioural and physiological measurements obtained by wearable IoT tools (i.e., eye tracker and electroencephalograph system) used to monitor psychological and psycho-physiological states of people suffering from dementia.
VS 3 collects and monitors microclimatic and environmental conditions in the different areas of the garden of Villa Bolasco (forest area, open area, lake area) in order to carry out an assessment of the effect of green and blue areas on health and well-being of visitors, elderly people and people with Alzheimer over the medium-term period.
VS 4 developed a “best-practices manual for the (re)design of green public spaces in relation to human health and wellbeing” and established of a “Local Landscape Observatory” with a focus also on the therapeutic effects of green and blue areas. This will contribute to development of the town and its surroundings promoting a new concept of urban green spaces centred on health and well-being principles.
VS 5 used technology (i.e., sensors, smartphones and apps) to increase visitors’ safety and enjoyability, thus making the garden more accessible and inclusive in the long-term for all visitors, including people with disability. Visitors’ behaviour was monitored via sensors and Android devices that also allow for improved safety interactions such as calls to specific emergency numbers. Data collected is shown in a map in real time, and location data is used in case of emergency, but also for understanding which part of the garden is more or less visited, correlating with data from VS3.
VS 6 saw the installation of a touch screen outside the walls of the park of Villa Bolasco in order to develop an adaptive and intelligent information system for visitors of the garden. By showing images, videos and sounds of the garden, and by visualizing environmental monitored data, the system stimulates the curiosity of citizens and visitors, informing them on what is hidden behind the external walls and its cultural and natural value. This informs the perception of users on the benefits provided by the nature on health and well-being.
VARCITIES H&WB Platform acts as a bridge connecting the tangible reality of Castelfranco Veneto with its digital twin, offering users a seamless, user-friendly experience to access time-series environmental data through interactive dashboards and insightful 3D renders.
Explore the dynamic transformation of our Pilot site in Novo Mesto and embark on a transformative eco-gaming experience with VARCITIES GoNature Game with full AR/VR 3-D render!
