Nuoro, Cesare Zonchello Hospital Complex Park

Cesare Zonchello Hospital Complex Park. Photo by Angela Nieddu, 2025, from Catalogo BBCC

The Cesare Zonchello Hospital in Nuoro was founded as a climate sanatorium for the treatment of tuberculosis, in response to the serious health conditions affecting the Nuoro area in the first decades of the twentieth century. The construction of the complex began in 1931 when the Italian Red Cross took possession of the land as a donation. It was later sold to the National Fascist Institute of Social Security (INFPS), the body that promoted the intervention. The sanatorium started operating in 1938 and was officially opened in 1939. The complex is organized according to a layout of pavilions surrounded by greenery, consistent with the medical and hygienic criteria of the time, and is attributed to the architect Ghino Venturi. With the progressive overcoming of the sanatorium function, the structure has been converted into a civil hospital, maintaining its health destination over time. It is located on the eastern outskirts of the city, in a hilly position and immersed in a large system of green spaces connected by internal avenues and paths, with a strong integration between buildings and open areas. The main access is through a gate that leads to a tree-lined avenue, divided into flower beds. In line with the avenue is the central pavilion; at the back there are the remaining pavilions, up to the church building. The park is divided into two main green spaces, distinguished by morphological and functional characteristics. The first is characterized by an ornamental design with a mixed shape, in which the lawn and tall trees are enclosed in flower beds of different geometries, and is distributed mainly in the central part of the complex. The second is configured as a wooded area, in which vegetation occupies space spontaneously, without a marked geometric definition. Along the avenues there are rows of mixed tree species and scattered hedges. Connecting the various pavilions there are bleachers built to overcome the differences in altitude between the different levels of the complex.

Consult the Catalogue of Cultural Heritage — Park Card of the Cesare Zonchello Hospital Complex NCTN 2000253076

Aspects of interest
The composition of the green is articulated, with lawn flower beds and tall trees. Proceeding to the upper levels, the flower beds are raised and are enriched by the presence of steps, which accompany the differences in altitude. In the complex there is thick vegetation, which contributes to the spatial and perceptual definition of green areas. The perception of space is strongly determined by the relationship between the pavilions and the green system, which is configured as an ordering element of the overall system.