FRONT DOOR – BACK DOOR. A HISTORY
FRONT DOOR – BACK DOOR. A HISTORY

Summary/Abstract: The article brings into discussion the conclusions of a long-term field analysis on the housing conditions provided by the socialist high-rise districts. The analysis focused on some details that might be greatly improved at minimum costs, such as the main accesses to the condominiums. The front doors had been always considered an expression of the owners self-esteem and pride. They also represent a place of significance for the culture and tradition of a community. It is pretty obvious that the way the front doors had been designed during the period between the 50s and the late 80s suffered from a decreasing respect for the people brought from the countryside area to accomplish the forced industrialization 5-years Plans, to be sheltered in the new housing districts, and an increasing struggle to reduce by all means the costs of construction, reflected in poorer and poorer finishes and plumbing’s but less in structures that proved to be resistant during the big earthquakes of 1977 and 1990. Thus, the analysis intended to provide an initial limited set of criteria for the evaluation of the front doors from different points of view and basis for the decisions on minimal interventions to improve the quality of these significant elements, with consequences to be expected on the quality of housing conditions for the residents.

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