It looks as if a tentative agreement has been reached for the Stadio della Roma project, but the protests continue and so do legal problems.
The initial project was rejected by the local authorities in Rome, but with suggestions on how to improve it to get the all-clear.
It looks as if a tentative agreement has been reached for the Stadio della Roma project, but the protests continue and so do legal problems.
The initial project was rejected by the local authorities in Rome, but with suggestions on how to improve it to get the all-clear.
Roma’s architects took them into account and today presented a new version of the plan, reducing the space required by 25 per cent, lowering the towers for the business park and removing a bridge to exit from Fiumicino Airport.
There was also a saving of €50m on the expansion of the metro system and a much larger portion of the estate would be devoted to open park space for locals to use.
Initial reports from today’s two-hour meeting suggest there is a tentative agreement, although it’ll take another week until that is made official.
However, the angry protests and even scuffles continued outside the meeting today, as local workers complained they had not been paid on time for months by the local council.
Assessor to Urban Planning Paolo Berdini today handed in his resignation in protest at the stadium project.
“While the outskirts of the city plunge into degradation without end and the housing emergency gets worse, the only concern around here seems to be building Roma a stadium,” said Berdini in his statement.
“We were supposed to bring the city back to legality and transparency in urban planning decisions, instead we continue with this contractual approach that has done serious damage to Rome.”
He has several political backers, as the Verdi and PRC declared Berdini is a “victim” of the situation, accusing the club of engaging in “financial speculation.”
Mayor Virginia Raggi, on the other hand, hit out at his resignation. “We’ve had enough. We overlooked the bar-style gossip, but now we have to accept the assessor prefers to continue causing controversy rather than getting to work. We will go forward.”
Vice-Mayor Luca Bergamo seemed impressed by the changes to the project.
“I want to thank Roma for responding to the indications in last week’s meeting by presenting a revised project that has some very innovative features,” he told reporters.
“We will talk about the urban development once we have completed this absolutely initial phase.”
Assessor Linda Meleo told Radio Radio there was hope of keeping everyone happy.
“This stadium can be built in a sustainable and adequate fashion, giving something the city needs, but with all the necessary legality and as little environmental impact as possible. That is our objective.”