Northeastern Piedmont between interregional metropolization and regional belonging

The purpose of this work is the analysis of the intermediate urban system of northeastern Piedmont, which acts as a “hinge” between the two major metropolis of Italy’s northwest, namely Turin and Milan. Subjected to the intense and sudden changes in recent decades, northeastern Piedmont is subject to processes of territorial decomposition and recomposition in which one can observe reactions to the consolidation of the Padanian megalopolis and actions that move in the direction of the formation of a “territorial platform” suitable for hosting complex and strategic functions. In light of this, the dynamics in northeastern Piedmont will be discussed on the basis of the three images proposed in Gottmann’s fundamental analysis of the megalopolis (1961) – the mosaic, the hinge, the incubator – in order to assess their role within the frame of spaces and functions in the megalopolis