Toscolano Maderno To House Guardia Forestale and Town Hall in New Development
A Guardia Forestale will arrive in Toscolano Maderno (currently in Gargnano), the Meteorological Institute of Desenzano, and, perhaps, the Garda Community, which has been residing in Gardone for some time. They will move into the former Vetturi paper mill, together with the new town hall, which “will be ready by April 30.” This was announced by Mayor Paolo Elena during the City Council meeting.
Among many building topics, which we will report on in a future article, the discussion about Vetturi resurfaced the other day. Acquired by Vallelago (a limited liability company based in Rezzato, with a capital of 20 million euros, managed by surveyor Marino Savoldi), the former paper mill has been emptied and is now undergoing reconstruction.
It will host about thirty private apartments and the new town hall, which costs 9 billion lire. Specifically: 1,778 square meters for offices, at 3.9 million lire per square meter, and 604 square meters of parking, at 1 million and 950 thousand lire. Additionally, a 10% VAT must be added. After the controversy over the walls, which we have already reported, the minority (center-left) and the majority (Polo) clashed at Palazzo Benamati, where the meetings are held.
Positions on the sale and safety of the property
Silvano Boni criticized the operation’s procedures. “The Municipality paid the Vallelago an initial deposit of 770 million lire,” said the former mayor. “And they face a very challenging payment schedule: 500 million lire every 15 days. By April 30, they will have paid 5.7 billion lire. They are exposing themselves to a very high amount, considering there is a mortgage of 8 billion lire on the building, with a valuation of 16 billion.”
Mayor Paolo Elena responded to the inquiry, stating that “the deposits are paid based on the progress of work. And gradually, a portion of the mortgage is released, which will be completely removed at the time of the notarized deed.”
“We will obtain 30% of the total cost as a contribution under the Objective 2 law. For the rest, we must cover costs with our own means (mortgage or sale of areas). No worries. The procedure has been approved by the auditors. And by April 30, 2002, we will move into our new headquarters.” Boni’s reply: “Let’s hope for the best. However, I believe there are not enough guarantees. Good intentions pave the road to hell.”
The discussion also touched on the seismic criteria adopted. “If it were a private residence, everything would be in order,” said the ex-mayor. “But here we are talking about a town hall, and a public building must absolutely remain standing in the event of an earthquake.”
Therefore, the walls must withstand at least 40% more stress. Especially since, above that, there is the Valvestino dam.” After reassuring technical reports, Elena informed about the latest updates.
“The former Vetturi paper mill, which the center-left administrators had initially planned for even 62 apartments (we, on the other hand, managed to reduce them by half, using the rest to relocate the town hall), will also accommodate the Guardia Forestale, currently in Bogliaco, and the branch of the Desenzano Institute of Geophysics, which collaborates with the Trieste Observatory and the Catholic University of Brescia.”‘
“The center, also including Sirmione and Pozzolengo, aims to study, among other things, the effects of bioclimatology on humans. Additionally, we are negotiating with the Garda Community for the transfer from Gardone Riviera, where they pay about a dozen million lire in rent annually, to Toscolano Maderno.”
“We would be very pleased if the assembly in December-January accepted our proposal.” And what about the old town hall, deemed no longer suitable? “It is an illegal building that does not meet required standards,” the mayor has always said.
“Disabled persons and the elderly, for example, cannot access the offices. The Local Health Authority (Azienda Sanitaria Locale) could evict us overnight. It was purchased by my grandfather, the Podestà, when there were only eight employees. Now, there are 51. We plan to transform it into a cultural center with a library and permanent exhibitions.”
