Unesco supports preliminary project for new Swiss Guard barracks
Published: Thursday, Dec 7th 2023, 12:00
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The plans to renovate the barracks of the Pontifical Swiss Guard in the Vatican have cleared an important hurdle. The Unesco advisory bodies have given the green light for the preliminary project to be developed into a construction project.
The expert report for the attention of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is an important milestone on the way to realizing the project for the new barracks, explained Doris Leuthard, President of the Patronage Committee, and Jean-Pierre Roth, President of the Foundation Board, to the media on Thursday.
It is a very favorable report in which some points of the preliminary project have been clarified, said Leuthard. Detailed planning for the project could now begin in 2024. Construction work is scheduled to begin in early 2026.
Just under 1.5 million francs still missing
According to the figures announced on Thursday, 48.5 million Swiss francs have been donated for the 50 million project so far. There is still a shortfall of just under 1.5 million francs. Leuthard emphasized that the volume of donations shows the palpable enthusiasm for the project.
As the Vatican is part of the Unesco World Heritage Site, every major real estate project on Vatican City soil must undergo an expert review in order to maintain this classification.
The experts commissioned by Unesco stated in their report that the character of the current barracks building was outdated. There are large differences in height, impractical connections and narrow rooms without individual sanitary facilities.
This project was rated positively overall. However, certain clarifications were requested. The façade of the current barracks should be restored and preserved.
The barracks are detached from the medieval Passetto di Borgo in order to better emphasize it. This leads to a reduction in the building volume. For this reason, double rooms are now provided for the recruits and single rooms only for the halberdiers. A memorial fountain in the courtyard of honor, which has blocked an old pilgrimage route since 1927, is to be relocated.
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