**5. Conclusions**

The design of efficient strategies of cultural heritage assets valorization is a complex process, which requires a profound knowledge of its peculiarities and its identity through history and involves multiple decision variables, actors and stakeholders whose objectives are often conflicting and competing [67,68]. Enhancement of cultural heritage consists of giving forms and norms to those activities, which aim at both promoting its knowledge, use and public enjoyment and fostering conservation and restoration works. There is often a dichotomy between the economic and socio-cultural perspectives in defending human values and historical testimonies, which contribute to creating a cultural identity

through centuries. Due to a lack of financial resources, it is fundamental to improve capacities for the sustainable use of cultural heritage by conserving, protecting, promoting and developing both natural and cultural heritage assets. Indeed, it is generally agreed in literature that sustainable development is a multi-dimensional concept and its evaluation is an interdisciplinary process, which involves cultural, social, environmental and economic disciplines, to show the impact of investment and allocation decisions on common resources. Integrated frameworks are thus necessary to cope with these issues and to support the decision-making processes [20,69]. In this respect, we provided a multi-criteria decision aiding approach for ranking valorization strategies of cultural heritage assets aimed at promoting their restoration and conservation, as well as at creating cultural and economic benefits by focusing on the ducal farmhouses of Aglié Castle estate in the Piedmont region, listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1997. We ranked the assets according to their potential in implementing successful valorization strategies. In order to be effective, these strategies should combine, on the one hand, efficient re-use of the above-mentioned buildings (currently in state of abandonment and partially or totally collapsed) and restoration of the original functions they were designed for, with the enhancement of existing synergies between them and the creation of new opportunities for their interconnections with cultural tourism circuits, on the other.

In order to provide guidelines to support the policymaker, it is of paramount importance to structure the analysis into sequential phases. In this respect, we firstly analyzed data relating to the real estate assets under investigation, with the aim of segmenting them for types of feasible interventions. Secondly, we developed the masterplan of the operation of valorization. We then implemented feasibility studies of individual assets in collaboration with the panel of experts to support the policymaker in the implementation phase of valorization actions.

The meta-design phase is de facto a fundamental preliminary step in the design of a future final project meant to the valorization of the farmhouses complex: it consists in constructing a structured mental scheme to clarify the needs that emerged in the preliminary study phase and provide guidelines for valorization strategies implementation. Contribution by different disciplines and technical competency are necessary in order to define the best project proposals to be developed within the preliminary planning stage and designing the final project. Many aspects that interact need to be carefully evaluated in order to obtain a sustainable proposal for compatible re-functionalization and re-use of this set of farmhouses.

According to our analysis, the main aspects to investigate are:


The main objective in the conceptualization of the interventions designed to the restoration and valorization of the Agliè ducal farmhouses is to re-set in place synergies and interconnections between the farmhouses, the city center, and the Castle. In this respect, the determinant of the valorization process identified through our analysis is the inclusion in the Agliè estate of cultural activities, accommodation facilities and the establishment of biodynamic agriculture and organic farming experimental centers.

Cultural activities are key drivers in the valorization process as they add value to memory and testimony of cultural and historical traditions and enhance the knowledge of the historical phases, which have characterized the estate from construction. The development of accommodation facilities is necessary in order to attract and welcome to the farms' tourists (e.g., cultural tourists) from the town and the Castle to the farm: tourists coming to the Castle are currently at 20,000 per year, with a trend destined to grow. Our findings reveal that agriculture and hospitality could be the keystones of the restoration, conservation and financial recovery process involving these assets.

Based on our results, activities and functions with the highest potential in the implementation of successful management strategies relative to each farmhouse are listed below.


**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, M.B., C.D. and A.M.; methodology, M.B., C.D. and A.M.; formal analysis, M.B., C.D. and A.M.; investigation, M.B., C.D. and A.M.; data curation, M.B., C.D. and A.M.; writing M.B., C.D. and A.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Acknowledgments:** Part of the research presented in this paper was carried out within the specialization thesis "*Il sistema delle cascine ducali ad Agliè. Dallo studio di fattibilità strategica ad una nuova proposta di valorizzazione"* by Alessia Marello, Postgraduate School of Beni Architettonici e del Paesaggio of Politecnico di Torino. Authors are grateful to Professor Monica Naretto for her contribution to the historical archive search and the analysis of the historical issues this study bases on.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.


**TableA1.**SWOTmatrixfortheLavanderiafarmhouse.

**Appendix**

 **A**

*Sustainability* **2020**, *12*, 1071


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