One hundred and fifty projects have been suspended after the unexpected setback of the “Save Milan” law. For several months, the Lombard capital has been facing urban chaos following investigations by the public prosecutor's office into allegations of abuses in construction. A rule contained in the “Save the house” decree of Minister Matteo Salvini should have been the solution to the situation. However, this was blocked in the environment committee. “Save Milan will find space in other regulations,” assures the leader of the Northern League. However, he admits that there is still no agreement between the majority political forces on the measures dedicated to Milanese urban planning. “There were people who opposed it, I proposed the rule but if others do not agree, I will not do violence to anyone,” adds the owner of MIT.
The investigation by the Milan prosecutor's office
It all started in the spring of 2023, when the Milan prosecutor's office opened an investigation into the “Hidden Garden”, a new building in Piazza Aspromonte, but the investigation quickly spread to dozens of other buildings. All the buildings targeted by the investigators were built with the simple Scia, the certificate of commencement of activity, and not a building permit. However, according to the prosecutors, these projects cannot be presented as simple renovations. They are much more radical construction interventions, which require an “implementation plan”.
The alarm of architects and builders
The files opened by the Milan prosecutor's office have rocked Milan's urban planning, with city council employees refusing to sign new permits for fear of being implicated in the investigation. Now it is the Assimpredil Ance, the builders' association, that is sounding the alarm, hoping for “a quick solution to get out of the impasse in which the entire construction chain finds itself”. Federico Aldini, president of the Milan Order of Architects, adds: “The lack of precision concerns future development projects, but also construction sites in progress, with the participation of professionals, companies and families who have already sold their homes.”
On the cover: Minister Matteo Salvini at the conference “Italy of Yes, projects and great works”, July 15, 2024 (ANSA/Luca Zennaro)
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