Villa Gioia Competition 2026
Competition Brief
Terraviva Competitions has launched an open international design competition for the adaptive reuse of Villa Gioia, a historic estate located in Bedizzole near Lake Garda in northern Italy. The villa and its surrounding park and service buildings are to be transformed into a contemporary retirement residence. Participants must propose sensitive architectural interventions that create comfortable living environments for an ageing population while preserving the historic character of the site. The design should support dignity, autonomy, and social interaction through a mix of private apartments, shared facilities, wellness areas, and accessible outdoor spaces.
Intent
The intent is to rethink traditional retirement housing by creating a vibrant community that blends historic architecture with modern needs. The organizers seek proposals that treat the villa not as a conventional care facility but as a dynamic living environment where residents can maintain independence and social connections. This includes careful integration of indoor and outdoor spaces to enhance wellbeing and quality of life for older adults.
Purpose
The purpose of the competition is to develop a feasible concept that turns Villa Gioia into a sustainable and inclusive retirement community. The project aims to respond to the challenges of an ageing society by providing high-quality residential spaces that promote dignity and belonging. By opening parts of the site to the wider community the competition also seeks to create positive social and economic value for the local area in the Piedmont region. Similar heritage reuse projects are often explored in our coverage of architecture.
Requirements
The competition is open to architects, designers, students, and multidisciplinary teams worldwide. Submissions consist of two A1 panels in horizontal format along with a short descriptive text. The panels must clearly communicate the proposal through plans, sections, elevations, diagrams, and visualizations. All materials must follow the official brief and be uploaded via the competition platform. The winning project has the possibility of further development with the client. When developing such adaptive reuse concepts many teams also consider broader neighbourhood contexts covered under urban design.
Jury
- Alessandro Sebastiani – Associate Director of Asset Management at SEGRO Italy, Milan
- Bruna Vendemmia – Architect and urbanist at Unina, Naples
- Marco Pavoni – Associate at Zaha Hadid Architects, London
- Manuela Rosso – Co-founder of Studio 3Mark, Cuneo
- Adrián Beltrán M. – Dean of Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism at Universidad UTE, Quito
- Joaquin Espasandín – Architect, academic, and urban designer at Manchester Metropolitan University
- Maria Tîlvescu – PhD architect at Ion Mincu University, Bucharest
- Antonino Caridi – Co-founder of Fluidiforme, Turin
Fees
| Registration Type | Fee (EUR, excl. VAT) |
|---|---|
| Early Registration (with 15% promo until 14 April 2026) | 49 |
| Standard Registration | Approx. 58 |
Rewards
| Award | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1st Prize | 5,000 € |
| 2nd Prize | 2,000 € |
| 3rd Prize | 1,000 € |
| 5 Golden Mentions | Free membership coupon |
| 10 Honourable Mentions | Free competition coupon |
| 30 Finalists | Publication on Terraviva channels + public exhibition |
Dates
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Competition Launch | 7 April 2026 |
| Submission Deadline | 23 October 2026 at 3:00 pm CET |
| Winners Announcement | 23 November 2026 at 12:00 pm CET |
✦ ArchUp Competition Review
Terraviva Competitions organizes the Villa Gioia Competition 2026 as an open call for the adaptive reuse of a historic villa into a retirement residence. The jury includes an international panel of architects and professionals from various countries which provides a reasonable level of expertise. This is a heritage transformation competition focused on residential design for an ageing society rather than a pure branding or graphic exercise. The total prize pool of 10,000 € with a first prize of 5,000 € offers meaningful financial incentive along with the possibility of further project development. For participants the realistic value lies in cash rewards and the opportunity that their concept could influence an actual built project on a historic site.
Conclusion and final thoughts
This competition comes from Terraviva Competitions a platform that regularly launches open design calls with private clients. It has moderate visibility in international design circles but remains client-driven rather than a major independent competition. The substantial prize money and potential for implementation give it concrete professional value. However its contribution to the wider architecture industry is limited because the scope is focused on a single historic villa rather than broader urban innovation. Early registration keeps costs accessible yet the commercial context reduces overall critical independence. The competition will likely appeal most to architects interested in heritage reuse and senior living design in Italy. The emphasis on creating inclusive environments for ageing populations connects well with creative approaches seen in sustainability and community-focused design.
Registration Deadline
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