Lanchetta Waterfront

The transformation of the Lanchetta waterfront reimagines a forgotten stretch of the Lugano lakefront, renewing a public park dating from the 1970s. The project restores the memory of the site’s original geomorphology: a curved pebble shoreline shaped by the lake and the mouth of a historic channel now diverted underground. Gravel, stone mulch, and exposed rock surfaces reinterpret the mineral landscape and limestone geology of the Lake Lugano basin.

Historically, Lanchetta served as the landing point for barges transporting stone from the Caprino quarries, materials that helped build Lugano itself. The new park draws directly from this legacy, transforming the waterfront into a contemporary public landscape rooted in local history and ecology.

At the center of the park lies a flexible recreational clearing with sand, seating, benches, and parasols. Beneath this open space sits an underground sewage pumping station whose structural constraints prevented the planting of large trees. Rather than treating these limitations as obstacles, the project transforms them into opportunities: deadwood trunks create habitats for insects, birds, and small mammals, turning the park into an ecological refuge within the city.

Rocks, flowering vegetation, shrubs, and wetland habitats form a diverse ecological mosaic that promotes biodiversity while reconnecting citizens with nature.