Solar Energy Availability in Urban Densification Process Impact on Existing Buildings in A Swiss Case Study

Urban densification is a growing phenomenon that is strongly changing the interaction between existing buildings and the surrounding environment. As example, in Switzerland, the Cantonal Director Plan, expected for the next years, will change the urban density allowing to raise the three to four floor high buildings now separated by not too wide streets, to get over up to eight floors, without modifying the width of street layout. The paper deals with a case study located in Paradiso municipality, part of Lugano's settlement (CH) where the impact of the future buildings on pre-existing buildings, especially on the historical heritage has been quantified to understand the energy fallout by different points of view (i.e. solar energy availability, daylighting, energy saving, comfort and energy production through active solar systems, etc.). The paper focuses on a phase of a wider project aiming to evaluate the complexity of energy performance change in buildings and provide guidelines of intervention to assess the suitability of urban development solutions in dense urban context.