The Post-Earthquake Transformation of Laç, Albania. From an Innovative Masterplan to Partisan Reconstruction

The earthquake that hit Albania in November 2019 resulted in the loss of 51 lives, thousands of injuries, and thousands of damaged buildings. Immediately after the earthquake, the government undertook an emergency reconstruction initiative supported by foreign partners. Such an initiative became an opportunity for deep urban transformation operations in the affected areas. The city of Laç was the first to benefit from the reconstruction program through the planning of new development urban areas with over 700 apartments. The master plan, proposed in collaboration between the professors of the University of Florence and the Polytechnic University of Tirana, went beyond a housing project, attempting to generate a new city center equipped with public and urban infrastructure. Discussing the experience acquired during the preparation of the master plan for Laç, the paper aims to analyze the power and efficiency of certain planning instruments in emergencies, remarking on how crises can be turned into development opportunities. At the same time, it is noted how the interaction between different stakeholders in such conditions can significantly impact the decision-making and the final outcome, both on an urban and architectural scale.