The municipal administration of Faenza started a project aimed at improving aspects related to urban decor In the Old Town. The interventions, which involved a series of investments, were originally scheduled for the summer of 2023 but were subsequently postponed and reorganized following the emergency caused by the May floods. There will be numerous initiatives that will be launched immediately to improve the center of Faenza, both with regards to cleanliness and street furniture.
By collecting reports from citizens and commercial operators, as well as evaluating the current context, the administration has drawn up a list of interventions. Although the Municipality knows that there is still a lot to do, the aim is to raise awareness among citizens so that they maintain a high level of urban decorum through virtuous behaviorsin compliance with the ‘Urban Police Regulations and for civil coexistence’ of the Union of Romagna Faentina.
Among the priorities within the project, the theme of cleaning streets and public buildingsburdened by the presence of birds that deposit their guano. Regard to urban hygieneit was decided to adopt a machinery composed of an electric vacuum cleaner with washing kit (Glutton H2O) operated by the staff of the Ciclat Consortium, in charge, together with the Hera Group, of managing the cleaning service in the city, as part of the Temporary Grouping of Companies concessionaire of the Service. This device will collect small abandoned objects and will clean the areas affected by localized dirt, such as guano or excrement, with water.
The cleaning operation using an electronic vacuum cleaner will take place daily basis in the mornings (6 days a week, excluding Thursdays), with a particularly significant service also on Sunday mornings in the central areas of the city. The areas involved in the operation will be Piazza del Popolo, Piazza della Libertà, Piazza Nenni and Piazza Martiri della Libertà; sections of the main city streets and internal areas such as porticoes, alleys or open spaces will also be included which, due to their valuable characteristics and the difficulty encountered in cleaning with traditional mechanized sweepers which are too bulky, require particular attention. The intervention areas will be divided into specific sectors subject to daily cleaning shifts. These actions will support the already established program for extraordinary cleaning.
As regards the activities of weed removala three-year collaboration will be signed which involves the involvement of around fifteen Scouts of the ‘Faenza 3’ Group (Parish of San Marco) which, in the periods of the year in which the phenomenon of weeds is more present, will be established in teams and they will intervene, both in the morning and in the afternoon, for six days a week, in the areas to be cleaned. The Scouts will also report to the competent offices any damage or problems related to decorum which will be promptly addressed. The collaboration between the administration and the Scout Groups therefore has the aim of improving the usability of the historic centre, its redevelopment and contributing to its beautification, whilst at the same time encouraging a sense of civic responsibility and respect for common spaces, thus transmitting a message that can encourage cooperation and participation of residents in taking care of the spaces.
Among the other initiatives contained in the project, the installation in two points of the center of ‘ecobox’ containers that they will go to screen the glass ‘target service’ bins to support activities in the area. Once installed, the managers will be provided with the keys for the delivery of the glass with the relevant instructions on the procedures for use. The emptying will take place on a scheduled basis and in the first period it will be monitored to highlight any excesses in the disposal so as to better modulate the collection.
But the project linked to the decoration of the historic center does not end with these interventions. One of the very current issues linked to historic centers is the presence of vacant premises where some Empty shop windows convey a sense of abandonment, a phenomenon that worsened in Faenza after the floods in May. It was decided to send communications to the owners of premises commercial again vacant so that they work to comply with the legislation which imposes a series of actions for keep their spaces in a decent and clean way. Furthermore, as part of the Fare Faenza actions, the institutional communication campaign which aims to tell citizens about the transformation path they are experiencing thanks to the projects financed by the PNRR, other sources of financing and the Municipality’s own resources, the administration will propose to the owners of the vacant premises of use their shop windows to talk about the projects that will change the face of the city.
Also there fight against the abandonment of animal waste from affection it is at the center of the decoration project; in this case the civic sense of the owners of ‘four-legged friends’. In this regard it was decided to employ control personnel of the mandatory equipment that animal owners, according to municipal regulations, must have with them: container for water to be poured on liquid excrement and bags to collect solid excrement.
For the public bathroomsinstead, steps were taken extend opening hours and to implement cleaning shifts, especially at events taking place in the heart of the city.
As for the Squareheart of Faenza, from maintenance work will begin at the end of Juneextraordinary to install or replace bird deterrents on municipal buildings and loggias so as to discourage parking in the historic center.
Finally, regarding the tents in Piazza del Popoloa repair and replacement intervention of some of them, an activity that will take a few months and which will continue until complete recovery. At the same time, a service has been activated for the management of the awnings along the porticoes which will allow timely maintenance.
However, in order for these actions and the investments made to be successful and the efforts not to be wasted, it is necessary to active collaboration of citizens, even in small personal actions, as established by the current regulations of urban decorum; they are the ones who have to contribute to keeping their city cleaner.
Andrea Fabbri, deputy mayor with responsibility for the historic centre: “An important project is starting to increase the level of decorum and cleanliness of the historic center. Our city is beautiful, but for its care, especially after the floods, it is necessary to invest more both as an administration and as citizens. This is a complex and detailed project that will not immediately solve all the problems but will require time and above all consistency in actions to see important changes. Today is not a point of arrival but a starting point of many actions that will need to be monitored, modified and calibrated over time until the right composition is found. The project was developed with councilor Ortolani and involves many offices and sectors of the Municipality who have worked together and who above all will have to continue to work together to obtain the results that we all want to obtain”.
Luca Ortolani, councilor with responsibility for the Environment: “Today we are implementing an additional cleaning service along the streets of the center, a neighborhood ecological operator who will help increase the cleanliness of the heart of Faenza. They are important resources, which will be able to multiply their effectiveness thanks to the groups of active citizens who work every day to keep our city cleaner. Faenza is increasingly sustainable and we want it to become even more beautiful.”
