The "Villa del Sole" project. A green area without greenery anymore...

Abstract

This study analyzes the recent redevelopment project of "Villa del Sole" - a green area in the centre of Agrigento, built after the Second World War - where numerous trees have been felled to make way for a new building to be used as a kindergarten. All this has given rise to discontent and numerous criticisms - both from citizens and experts in the sector - of the city's governance which pays little attention to the real needs of the community. While in other cities trees are planted, in Agrigento is concreted. The iter project conducted by the municipal administration, opaque and devoid of any hint of bottom-up planning, has the declared objective of obtaining significant European public funding (PNRR). The survey, also in view of Agrigento "Italian Capital of Culture 2025", proposes the adoption of eco-sustainability and participatory urban planning criteria, missing elements in the contested project, for which work has currently been suspended by the competent Superintendency of Cultural Heritage.