THE EAGLE. The L’Aquila summer of 2024 starts with a bang. The Municipality announces the White Night (15 June), while a lorry crashes into the newly renovated Piazza Duomo and overwhelms a stand. Which triggers the domino effect of controversy, with the new paving and the Porta Leoni car park returning to the forefront of the city debate.
THE WHITE NIGHT
The council has given the green light to the municipal offices to prepare all the activities aimed at promoting the White Night on 15 June. «The events that will be included in the program will take place in the heart of the city», we read in a note, «among streets and squares that will host events designed for a varied audience that includes young people and adults, people of L’Aquila and tourists», with «attractive initiatives that encourage the mix of monumental and urban elements, commercial offer, leisure and refreshment, thus providing a further possibility of promoting the historic centre”.
THE ACCIDENT
«A truck entered Piazza Duomo for the “Vinaria” event, also demolishing some stands», commented the opposition councilor in the same hours Paolo Romano. «A truck that had – I hope – no authorization to enter the square». Romano then recalls how «the paving of the square cost a good 7 million and that the areas repaved so far have been closed off to all vehicles, causing great inconvenience to the resident population, traders and customers. I would also like to point out that cleaning the new flooring costs the community between 12 thousand and 18 thousand euros for each passage of vehicles considering only the route from the Fountain to the Square”, equivalent to “580 thousand euros a year for weekly cleaning. While citizens are asking for an adequate transport, logistics and parking plan”, he maintains, “the council continues to hold events without caring about what they may cause: any damage to the pavement resulting from the latest episode will certainly not fall on the company which is carrying out the work and which was forced to hand over portions of the square prematurely without final testing”.
LION GATE
“Maybe the council thinks that the people of L’Aquila are stupid”, is the comment of the councilor of L’Aquila courageous Lorenzo Rotellini, which returns to attack the administration on the parking issue after the recent attacks by Forza Italia. At the centre, the recent adjustment of the Porta Leoni car park rates (1 euro every half hour after the first 30 minutes free, ndc). «Exactly seven months ago I submitted a motion to the city council which contained the proposal to keep the first half hour free and to provide a rate of 1 euro for each hour of parking», as well as contemplating the inclusion of «fractions of an hour, at 50 cents every half hour. In this way”, according to Rotellini, “the rotation of vehicles would be facilitated with great benefit to motorists, traders, the Municipality coffers and tourists”. Hence the thrust, with the Municipality which «should promote initiatives to encourage awareness and frequenting of the shops in the historic centre, evaluating the possibility of providing concessions, such as discounts to be used in commercial activities for those parking in the Porta car park Lions. The rates for the Porta Leoni car park are changing”, points out Rotellini, “but we prefer to take the citizens for fools and keep a public car park full only for the events that this administration likes so much, but which do little for the economy of this city”.
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