Ciao! We had a lot happen this past week at Fonte Martino.  Work has officially begun on The Cortona Suite and The Siena Suite and we are more than pleased to say that we are on schedule for our Spring 2019 opening!

This past Tuesday, vehicle after vehicle appeared at Fonte Martino!  Construction supplies and machinery were dropped off and our team began quickly getting things in place.  Before we knew it, the rumble of the excavator could be heard and within a short amount of time, the pigsty was gone!

 

To give a little background, there is a large building that was used in the distant past as a pigsty and also a large garage.  Both had to be removed so that our first two external guest suites could be constructed in their place.  Italy is very protective of its countryside and you are generally only permitted to build new by reusing space previously occupied by older buildings.  This is especially true where we are located because we are surrounded by two beautiful UNESCO World Heritage sites (The Val d’Orcia and Valdichiana).

Soon after, the excavator started on the large concrete garage.  This was a little more tedious due to the garage being constructed with steel reinforced concrete.  Here in Italy, they try to recycle as much as possible.  The pigsty, for example, was constructed of brick, which will be ground up to create stone used for backfilling.  The garage has to be recycled differently because of the steel in the concrete.  Even with the extra work involved, the garage was completely gone on Wednesday.

The rest of the week, involved the excavator removing the hillside where the two buildings once stood.  This is where The Cortona Suite and The Siena Suite will be constructed.  Working with our architect Maurizio Trabucco, the two suites were designed to be complimentary to the beauty of the surrounding countryside.  Maurizio’s architectural vision is uniquely designed in that it uses the hillside to create panoramic views for the suites.  The rendering below provides a good visual concept of this design.

Fonte Martino Guest Suite Rendering

Fonte Martino Guest Suite Rendering

We will keep you updated on our progress and don’t forget – part 2 of The Montepulciano Suite update is coming soon where we will show you its interior!