An elevator for an historical college: how to improve accessibility respecting the existing building

Collegio Cairoli is the oldest students’ accommodation managed by EDiSU (a special agency established by the University of Pavia and under its direct control). The building was the cloister of the S. Francesco Church but it was transformed in housing for the students of theology by Joseph II of Austria in 1783, but closed by Napoleon during his staying in Pavia. It was opened in 1948, can host more than 100 students of the University of Pavia and there are also some small apartments for professors. Now there are students coming from all the Italian regions and also some Erasmus students, living in single rooms and sharing common spaces (Kitchens on each floor, halls for studying, a library, a gymnasium, ecc.). The college also manages some cultural events open to the town, such as conferences or concerts in the Aula Magna, at the first floor of the building. To make this Aula accessible, the Director of the college (a professor of the University) decided in 2013 to put an elevator connecting the ground floor to the first floor, that is the level of the main entrance to the college with the level with the common spaces. The design was realised by the Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture of the University of Pavia and was licensed by the Superintendence of the Cultural Heritage in 2014. The solution is reversible: no original walls or floor slabs were destroyed and the only element of the building that was removed it is a wooden and glass panel, that was disassembled and now is retained in the store of the College. The project was developed following the UN Declaration for the Rights of the Persons with disabilities and the Italian building codes to ensure accessibility and valorisation of the cultural heritage