Lamba Doria Palace
LAMBA DORIA PALACE
Before the Savona Chamber of Commerce bought the Palace of Ferraro-Grassi-Lamba Doria in 1952 it had had several homes. One of these was the "Mainetta" site from 13th June 1926 until the building's destruction in October 1943.Today you can find the Chamber's main offices at Via Quanda Superiore 16, with other services on the 2nd floor of Piazza Leon Pancaldo 1, and at Via Maria Solari 3-5 where the institutional archive is kept.
There is also an office in Albegna which serves the western parts of the Province. It is in the Centre of Experimentation and Agricultural in Regione Rollo. The Albegna office hosts food tasting evenings for wines and oils.
Before it was bought by the Chamber on 16th March 1952 the Lamba Doria Palace had been the property of the Ferrero family. It is actually three separate medieval palaces that Bernardo Ferrero turned into one. After it passed into the hands of the Chamber of Commerce it underwent restoration between 1953 and 1958.
The credit for saving this historically important palace from a slow decline after being damaged should go to Angelo Magnamo who chose this palace as a suitable site for the institute, returning it to its former glory. With the help of Paolo Bianchi, an engineer, and Enzo Magnani, an architect, he drew up the plans for its restoration.
The main entrance was moved to face the sea, extending the stairway and joining the area below in such a natural way it seemed as if the stairs had always been there. It was thanks to the dedication of Magnano, along with that of the two technicians that lead to the high quality of workmanship under their supervision. They also brought in the door that now graces the main entrance, and the magnificent fresco by the Semino brothers.
After many years of work, the palace was inaugurated at the site of the Chamber of Commerce on 30th November 1958: the only example of a Savonese 15th century residence, completely restored and returned into the service of the Province's economy.
Today the building is in excellent shape, having been structurally strengthened, is centrally heated and air conditioned and it has a power supply specifically designed for the informatics systems and has a back-up supply in case of power cuts.
