The Eagle. “We strongly wanted this meeting of the 3rd commission – said the Hon. Stefania Pezzopane presenting this morning the reasons for the request for a meeting on “L’Aquila Capital of Culture 2026” – asking President Frullo since March for this commission to discuss, build together and share a path in the presence of the Mayor and Profs Crociata and Sacco who drafted the candidacy project. We experience 2026 as an extraordinary opportunity and as a possibility of a strategic leap in quality for cultural policies. The mayor is not present. And it’s nothing new. What the two guests said, however, convinced me a lot: it will not be a calendar of events but the construction of a territorial strategy. We are here, we ask to involve all the territories, the suburbs and the hamlets, even the most socially and geographically marginalized areas.”
PD councilor Stefano Albano then spoke to the commission: “The presentation of professors Sacco and Crociata is undoubtedly an ambitious challenge for our territory: a laboratory to experiment with a new model of development that starts from L’Aquila in contrast to that of the large urban centres, transforming the culture of our city into an industry, capable of boosting the economy and creating jobs. This ambition, which we look upon favorably, however clashes with the management that the Biondi administration has had so far, lacking planning and consultation. We will fight so that the Capital of Culture can be a great opportunity for all the people of L’Aquila.”
Paolo Romano (L’Aquila Nuova) also affirmed: “Professor Crociata and Professor Sacco have demonstrated how we can talk about culture, in a concrete, planning, prospective, pro-European sense. An approach that we as opposition have always asked for. The dossier marks an important turning point in comparison to the planning of the past years of the municipal council: it talks about projects and not events, it talks about repercussions rather than the moment in itself of the capital of culture, of geographical and social peripheries to be reconnected with the center rather than the simple spectacularization of the city. Many things will have to be done starting from Governance which must be contaminated with everyone’s contribution: especially the cultural actors of our territory. As opposition, as always done in favor of the city, we will not fail to make our contribution.”
For the councilors Elia Serpetti and Massimo Scimia (Passopossible) who also spoke in the commission: “Today we gave our contribution to a session of the Third Commission “of importance” for the future prospects linked to the designation as Italian Capital of Culture 2026. A shame to have to discuss this topic without having had the opportunity to view the draft document programmatic if not in session.
We trust in the committee’s ability to mitigate the risks of a program of events without structured future returns for the institutions and small businesses that create culture in this city; something that unfortunately we have been used to for too many years, with a significant waste of resources. Let it be a program of projects that, working towards 2026, looks to 2027 and beyond.
Another aspect on which we will have to influence and we the opposition will be vigilant on this aspect is linked to the involvement of the “social and physical” peripheries, of our numerous (eternal forgotten) hamlets, of the young and the elderly who in many ways, often not very visible, they ask for help from the middle groups who have the duty to look at and guide the future. A city is measured by how far it can look… and that’s the job of politics.” The courageous councilor of L’Aquila Simona Giannangeli: “The participation of the entire council is important, it is important that it is a structured process with the council as the protagonist, with preparatory working tables. “
For councilor Verini, who also spoke in the commission: “L’Aquila, the capital of culture, must be ambitious and ambition passes through overcoming provincialism. It is a unique opportunity to take a leap forward that stands the test of time and marks stable progress for our city. Precisely for this reason, on the one hand I ask the mayor to also open up to the minority, on the other I assure an attitude of total collaboration on this issue without the temptation of political controversy. I believe that to request availability, you must first offer your own and, in this sense, the group I represent is ready. We have ideas, we represent a segment of our city that is modern and well based on our history, which can be useful for uniting tradition and innovation. We believe that the challenge can give us a city that changes for the better.”
The meeting closed by formalizing to the President the need for a participatory process and to provide a unitary document on governance and strategy towards 2026.
