Bagnoli

Bagnoli is a western seaside quarter of Naples, Italy, well beyond the confines of the original city. It is beyond Cape Posillipo and, thus, looking on the coast of the Bay of Pozzuoli. Bagnoli was one of the sites of Naples' industrialization in the early 20th century, with the construction of a steel mill. During World War II Bagnoli was damaged as a result of the bombings of Naples. After World War II, Bagnoli was overbuilt by virtually uncontrolled construction and then suffered urban decay. The first decade of the 21st century saw the removal of the steel mill and some improvement in the physical and visual landscape of the area, including the construction of a public educational facility and convention center called Città della Scienza ("Science City") as well as the conversion of the long ex-steel-mill industrial pier to a public promenade. Between 1946 and 1951 Bagnoli was the site of a Displaced Persons camp run by the International Refugee Organization. The complex occupied by the camp was originally built to provide a home for young people in need by the Bank of Naples Foundation on the occasion of the four hundredth anniversary of its foundation. The facility, "Collegio Costanzo Ciano", was a novelty in the field of social architecture in that it responded to the need to "ensure intellectual and political education, physical training and gymnastics". It contained schools, dormitories, infirmaries, workshops, sports building, a church and the theater, all set in a pleasant landscape setting. The project, designed by Francesco Silvestri, was divided into a series of terraces facing south which required substantial earthworks. The area chosen extended about 320 thousand square meters and was located between the district of Bagnoli, the slopes of the adjoining hills and the boundaries of site of the Triennial Exhibition of Overseas Italian Territories (Triennale d'Oltremare) at Fuorigrotta. The complex was designed to house approximately 2500 students of both sexes.