After Daniele Bassi’s second double mandate, there are three contenders for the mayor’s seat in Massa Lombarda. And if on the centre-left side the indication for the current councilor Stefano Sangiorgi, leader of the Pd-led «Massa Lombarda Futura» is clear, on the centre-right side the provincial coordination of Fratelli d’Italia has given explicit support to the «La Piazza Insieme” which Cesare Tozzola is running for, while Antonella Brini (opposition city councilor and former mayoral candidate for the centre-right in 2014) presents herself with the civic “Vivi Massa Lombarda”.
What are the three priorities of your mandate on which, if you were elected, you would try to intervene from the first months?
Antonella Brini: «Safety: the prefect says that we have 14% fewer delinquent episodes. We want to bring it to -50%. As a Union of Municipalities we must join the national “safe roads” project, which involves the army patrolling the critical areas of the territory, also in light of the various thefts of agricultural tools. The criteria for access to the welfare services of the Union and the Municipalities must be verified. A new Dup must be prepared by 7/31/24. The sewers must be checked and the mud eliminated. For territorial marketing, projects must be created with contributions and funds from the Mibact. A table with associations and businesses would improve the programming of historical events such as the yellow peach festival, the parade of allegorical floats, the international agricultural exhibition, concerts and theatre. A notice is needed for the maintenance of the cemetery. Bureaucratization, equity, inclusion, accessible mobility: these are the guiding words.”
Stefano Sangiorgi: «We need to be operational immediately with the Single Programming Document for the three-year period 2025/27, to be set up as early as July. Together with the other local administrations of the flooded areas, we must ask for the respect and realization of the commitments undertaken and not yet paid for the benefit of citizens, businesses and agricultural companies. The involvement of all forms of social, economic and cultural representation is needed to produce the expected renewal. Furthermore, we intend to intervene immediately with small interventions on the decoration of the historic center.”
Giovanni Tozzola: «Our intent is to carry forward many priorities, some at zero cost. Organizing a street market along the main street, proposing a market in Fruges, opening the central street to traffic, a meeting place for young people and a civic center for the elderly. Priority also on the roads and sewage system of Fruges. Another primary issue is about legality and safety, on which our program is very clear. Culture will be the basis from which to start to achieve the objective of the change that citizens expect. A clean, livable and “polycentric” city, without differences between center and suburbs. Consultation, with sharing, will be the means. The implementation times will depend on the bureaucracy, on the relationships with the new Union group, on the economic fabric and access to credit”.
What are the themes and interventions that you intend to develop in the medium-long term, in the area, over the next five years?
Antonella Brini: «Structural improvement of former bowling alley and former friars’ building. Creation of “Shall we make a film?” workshops, from writing to editing. I want to bring to Massa an editorial team of Radio Imagine, made up of children between 11 and 17 years old, connected to Italian and European youth groups, with interviews on the environment, sport, gossip, music, school, love, parents… 24 hours a day. And craft workshops: differently young people teach young people. The laboratory of allegorical floats should be placed at Jyl and the papier-mâché works that testify to the jovial history of Massa should be recovered. A true citadel of sport must be designed: faced with the prospect of growth of sports clubs, an adequate project is needed. The timing of the works of the Reclamation Consortium for the hydrological safety of the territory must be verified, the destruction of the green areas must be planned and the road system studied, to experiment with the reopening of the center from Bologna towards Ravenna”.
Stefano Sangiorgi: «Hydrogeological instability: strengthening the safety of the territories, at municipal level but above all of what is upstream from Massa, by those who are responsible for this. I remember that the flood that hit our city was caused by events (bank failures) that occurred in other territories. Then there are personal services and welfare: constant adaptation of the structures and methods of providing our personal services (today however among the most efficient, economical and effective in the entire province). Third: public works and urban planning. We will propose a concrete investment plan, without proclamations or fake promises, since in this historical moment, to be honest with our citizens, none can be done, and we will seek funding to make the public and road assets of the area increasingly functional.”
Giovanni Tozzola: «See previous answer».
Throughout Italy, there is a problem of high cost of living and growing poverty. How can it be addressed with the tools of a municipality?
Antonella Brini: «It touches on healthcare, which is very important to us: in view of the greater life expectancy, community homes must be better structured. The new poor are increasing: today we have around 135 people helped by Caritas. The Municipality must follow the fragilities and have the resources from the Region to do so.”
Stefano Sangiorgi: «Strong institutional collaboration is necessary (with the active involvement of the ANCI) to forcefully and determinedly ask for real subsidiarity. Resources must remain as close as possible to citizens, to allow them to control their use. Furthermore, the national government must make the choice to actually fight tax evasion and make those resources available to local authorities, the public entities that in Italy know how to use them best for the benefit of their communities”.
Giovanni Tozzola: «Inflation is the process that leads to a general increase in the prices of goods and services, which therefore reduces the purchasing power and value of money. The causes are mainly associated with the quantity of demand for goods and services that exceeds the quantity of supply (for example the increase in post-pandemic demand and the decrease in supply due to Covid closures), then the increase in energy costs . In summary, macroeconomic causes. For this reason, the main measures to defend ourselves are macroeconomic, implemented by the Central Banks. This does not mean that a Municipality must also be attentive to the effects on the territory caused by inflation. Which is considered an “unfair tax” because it does not affect everyone in the same way: usually those who have less see a greater share of their income eroded and this requires attention, listening and solidarity. The structure of social and welfare policies that the municipal administration has will have to be adequately organized and oriented, also through the amplification of current synergies with citizen volunteering. But in our opinion this is not the first intervention, it is not the usual welfarism. The point is not so much “giving” as “not taking away”. The first concrete tool is not to increase municipal taxation, demonstrating sensitivity towards everyone, sharing and responsibility. The municipal administration has decided a recent increase in local taxation of over 9%, without considering the inflation process or the recent floods. Inflation also affects the economic fabric: businesses, commerce, agriculture, real estate, etc. An administration must have the ability to listen, involve for targeted and common action, taking charge of local requests also towards higher-level bodies”.
What role does associationism have in your municipality and how can generational renewal be supported?
Antonella Brini: «Associations are a wealth and should be further enriched with more information and openness to membership. Some are open only to people who belong to the same political thought. The administration will have resources available for the purchase of a modular structure to be made available to associations, free of charge, so that they no longer have to pay rent to a party, so as to use the savings in organizing events. For generational change, young people must be involved in workshops to convey passion and community spirit to them. It is the last chance to improve our territory… There is no point in complaining and out of party faith always voting for the same flag. Citizens must vote for the people in the administrative elections: the most concrete ones, which give the most confidence. Facts, not illusions.”
Stefano Sangiorgi: «The cultural, social, sporting and civic associations of Massa represent authentic excellence. Without the women and men who make themselves available with passion, commitment and competence we would not be able to guarantee much of what we can offer. During the hardest moments (pandemic and flood above all), we had further demonstration of the generosity of our fellow citizens, also in support of other territories. We will have to improve communication towards young people (many of whom are already generously involved), to bring them further closer, making them feel even more part of the system and empowering them, why not also in their choices, by giving them a voice. Young people and associations are there and want to make themselves heard more, in the area and for the area. We cannot fail to respond to a social call of this kind.”
Giovanni Tozzola: «Associationism is the added value of the territory, a heritage for the citizens. In our Municipality he has an important voice with roles in various sectors. Auser, Ior, Caritas, Pro Loco and then Alpini, the Ragazzi di via Angiolina, the Festa dè Parghèr, La Piazza, etc… The “new volunteering” has only one way of supporting renewal: culture. Belonging, inclusion and sharing will be crucial to closing the circle.”
