In a day of citizen participation, details of this stage of the reconstruction project of the historic campus of the University of La Serena were provided.

Since December 2018, the consulting firm Tándem and the MOP Architecture Department have been working on the design stage of the reconstruction project of the Piñera House of the University of La Serena, which has an execution period of 600 days. This stage considered a first day of citizen participation, which was held in the Ignacio Domeyko Aula Magna and where details of the project were shared, highlighting the idea of ​​returning to the essence of the property, the construction of a multipurpose space and a work approved by the seismic standard.

Present at the activity were the Director of Liaison with the Environment and Extension, Dr. Catalina Cvitanic, and the Director of Services, Marcos Sepúlveda, who reviewed what happened from the night of the fire that consumed the historic building, until the efforts made to complete the reconstruction project.

“The attachment to that space was such that I really felt like my house was burning. The helplessness of not being able to do something to reverse that situation (...). “I felt great regret.” This is how Dr. Cvitanic remembers that night of June 1, 2015, in which a raging fire destroyed the premises where the Extension Center of the University of La Serena operated.

Marcos Sepúlveda also remembers that sad day, “which hours before had been very satisfying, because the first stone of the future Dentistry building had been laid. But at night we had the sadness and helplessness of watching this historical monument burn.”

Despite the impact and commotion that this fire caused in the community, the director points out that a few hours after what happened, the Rector Nibaldo Avilés together with various authorities began the efforts that would allow the reconstruction of this building declared a National Monument in 1981. and which hosted a large part of the academic and cultural outreach activities towards the community.

“After the fire, meetings began with various institutions and organizations, such as the Regional Government, SUBDERE, the Culture Council, National Monuments, the Architecture Directorate of the Ministry of Public Works and the ULS, and an IDI file was established to generate a reconstruction project for Casa Piñera. This formulation task was taken on by the MOP Architecture Directorate, and we are committed to the first stage of cleaning the interior of the premises, the debris produced, reinforcing the walls and protecting them,” details Sepúlveda.

Another important step towards the reconstruction of the facility, the manager points out, was taken in November 2017, when the Regional Government, through the Heritage Value Enhancement Program, approved the resources to finance the design stage of Casa Piñera, which is already under development and considers the design of architecture, engineering and the specialties corresponding to its 2.425,81 m2 of surface, in addition to a diagnosis of the situation current status of the property and the intervention criteria for the restoration.

“I think it is excellent that state organizations join the different efforts to carry out the recovery of this historical monument and even more praiseworthy that they make room for this citizen participation activity to socialize the reconstruction of the Casa Piñera,” said Catalina Cvitanic, who highlighted that the incorporation of a multipurpose space “will allow the University of La Serena to return cultural programming to the community in the heart of the city.”

Marcos Sepúlveda has a similar opinion, who maintains that “the different organizations have had the will to restore the house, because it is a heritage of the University and the community.”

Written by Gonzalo Lozano, Communications Department