Former Lanerossi Wool Mill in Schio Acquired by Unicomm, Future Uncertain

The Fabbrica Alta, a historic industrial building in Schio, Italy, designed by Auguste Vivroux in 1862 and once the heart of the Lanerossi wool mill, has been sold at auction to Unicomm, a large distribution company. The municipality retains ownership of the Fabbrica Alta and adjacent properties. This sale marks a new chapter for the site, which has been largely unused since its closure in the 1970s-80s. The Fabricaltra regeneration project, launched in 2017 by Ca' Foscari University of Venice with the municipality and Fondazione Teatro Civico di Schio, aimed to revitalize the space through site-specific art and training. Artists involved included the D20 collective, Marie Lelouche, dancers Elisabetta and Gennaro Lauro, and filmmaker Jérôme Walter Gueguen, whose film "Bigoli Bang ‒ La teoria delle stringhe spezzate" was shot entirely in the factory. The project has stalled due to a focus on large-scale construction interventions over cultural initiatives. Saverio Bonato of Casa Capra hopes Fabricaltra can mediate dialogue between the private owner, administration, and citizens. Fabrizio Panozzo, scientific director of Fabricaltra, criticizes the tendency to treat cultural work as decoration rather than transformative production. The future of the site remains uncertain, with fears of commercial development.