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The area north of Milan’s Piazzale Loreto is not on the city’s traditional design circuits. It doesn’t have the cobblestoned charm of Brera and the fashion triangle, there isn’t an abundance of former warehouses turned into cultural destinations, and it’s probably not where you’d want to take a walk on a sunny day. There’s a tinge of dystopia to the area, which is defined by one of the city’s largest traffic arteries, a string of supermarkets, petrol stations, and apartment and office buildings that grow less and less picturesque as you move away from the city centre.

But change is afoot: Milan-based architect Andrea Caputo is now working as part of a team to transform the Piazzale with green spaces and