brutalist icon torre velasca reopens in milan as mixed-use tower

milan’s brutalist icon returns with new mixed-use identity

After a three-year restoration, Torre Velasca, Milan’s iconic skyscraper, reopens to the public with a fresh identity that amplifies its brutalist-modernist legacy. First completed in 1958 by the avant-garde collective BBPR (Banfi, Belgiojoso, Peressutti, and Rogers), the concrete tower has long stood as a symbol of postwar Italian resilience and experimentation. Now, under the direction of Hines, with Asti Architetti leading the architectural refurbishment, Torre Velasca enters a new phase as a hybrid vertical complex that combines residential, corporate, cultural, and communal uses, anchored by a newly created urban piazza.

all images ©Albo

Hines and Asti Architetti restore Torre Velasca

The defining form of the tower, composed of a rational base rising into a dramatic overhanging crown supported by angled buttresses, is preserved in its entirety. Often likened to a medieval fortress or Lombard tower, its bold silhouette remains unchanged, but its skin and systems are carefully upgraded. The original clinker brick facade, one of the most distinctive features of the building, was subjected to extensive restoration, led by Milan-based Asti Architetti for global real estate firm Hines, using laser cleaning and manual repair techniques to preserve its original grain and irregularities. Windows, some of which had been replaced with incompatible frames in the decades since its construction, were returned to BBPR’s specifications, reintroducing uniformity and rhythm to the grid.

The restoration also involves an overhaul of the building’s technological core—HVAC, energy efficiency systems, acoustic insulation, and digital infrastructure—earning the project LEED Gold and WiredScore Gold certifications. ‘The restoration had to be invisible,’ explains Paolo Asti. ‘Every intervention had to match the design logic and constructive intelligence of BBPR, or it didn’t belong.’

after a three-year restoration, Torre Velasca reopens to the public

reimagining BBPR’s skyscraper as a civic platform

Spanning 34,000 square meters of mixed-use program across 29 floors, what was once a gated skyscraper now opens fully to the public. The base now includes flexible event spaces, an exhibition gallery, retail units, and informal lounges. The 75-meter-high tower, once seen as a fortress, now functions as a civic platform. ‘This isn’t just a real estate project. It’s a return of public dignity to a building that was always meant to be part of the city, not apart from it,’ notes Senior Managing Director of Hines Mario Abbadessa.

Internally, public and private programs are layered vertically in a manner that respects the original tripartite structure: a commercial and communal ground plane, a modernist office block midsection, and a residential crown above—now reimagined as the METT Hotel & Lifestyle residences. The 18th floor houses MIA, a new panoramic restaurant designed with restrained luxury, while the mezzanine floors accommodate SUSHISAMBA and other food and wellness amenities. The interiors feature bespoke terrazzo, restored wood paneling, original signage typography, and hand-finished ceramics in an effort to echo the material intelligence of BBPR’s original scheme.

Perhaps the most radical gesture is at street level, where the formerly vehicle-dominated area around the tower has been entirely re-landscaped as Piazza Velasca, a pedestrian piazza paved in natural stone and planted with magnolias, olive trees, and native grasses. Asti Architetti’s custom benches and Esa Engineering’s lighting reinterpret BBPR’s design language in a contemporary idiom. The original street lamps designed by BBPR have also been restored, bridging past and present.

Milan’s iconic skyscraper adopts a fresh identity