New skyline for Novoli

04 November, La Repubblica

It’s like that viaduct is the definitive take off. A leap into the future. “The shopping centre with the green façade, the Court with the pointed architecture, the new university buildings, and now the elevated tramway. It doesn’t feel like Novoli anymore, it feels like Japan!”, Fabrizio shakes his head while sheltering from the rain outside the San Donato shopping centre. But someone is not happy: “They’ve destroyed the old Florence, I can’t recognize this place anymore”, explodes Giovanni outside a sofa shop across the roundabout in Via Forlanini.

In this new version of Novoli, everything runs except the traffic, which is jammed. Everything changes fast, a lot has already changed, and this is a controversial topic, as though the identity of a city is compromised. People suffer from the many construction sites, but they like this new skyline. Young people like Filippo Ferraro, local councillor, say:” Next year with the tramway we’ll be connected to the world in 10 minutes”. And those aged 80 still remember when in place of the former Fiat factory there were still sheeps herding and when instead of the Region offices there was the gas company.

All memories, because the present is a totally different story. Today, the neighbourhood with the new houses and the university thrives with shops and Chinese, Japanese, American and Mexican restaurants, apartments prices are rising (the line 1 to Scandicci has appreciated the houses along the line by 3 and 8%, according to Banca d’Italia), youth are crowding the cinemas, and families are filling the San Donato park. The only place that is empty is the underground garage whose works are interrupted. Rents are rising as well, and they’ll continue to rise: +10-15% once the tramway will be completed, as estimated by the local real estate agencies. Most of the commercial spaces in Via Gordigiani, vacant for many years, have been recently sold to investors that recognised the growth potential thanks to the new tramway. Perhaps, this is the same reason that made the giant “Immobiliare Novoli” building two new residential blocks (100 apartments) that will be ready in 2018 and announcing for 2020 other two residential buildings and two office buildings. In 7-8 months, with the new line 2 of the tramway linking centre and airport with a frequency of 5 minutes, the old neighbourhood of Fiat and concrete will have its final transformation.

Elderly people have been checking the advancement of the works for the tramway for months, rising from Via Novoli and landing in Viale Redi. There are 380 m of viaduct, 3 pillars, 5 holsters, 4 bays for 800 tons of steel and 1500 cubic metres of concrete. The tramway to and from the airport will rise in that point to 8 metres of height from the ground. For what concerns aesthetic, it’s necessary to wait for the final result: the viaduct will be covered with white alucobond, a glossy plastic material that will be the “shell” of the viaduct (except the tracks). There will be then two cycling lanes on each side and power poles that will serve also as lights. Under the bridge, there will be a parking lot, while at the other extremity of the viaduct, in Viale Redi, a green space will be created. While the bridge is not finished yet, the works on the tracks along Via di Novoli are practically finished, with shelters already in place and soon also the remaining elements. The changes in terms of real estate are considerable: “The market is doing quite well, we have great projects, I’m positive”, comments the Immobiliare Novoli president, Paolo Giustiniani. According to Tecnocasa too, the area has great potential: “There is a good demand for properties for rental due to the presence of the Court, the university and Pignone. The average price for a two-room apartment is around 130 thousand euro and rents are 600 euro monthly”. But in Novoli the future has just started.

Source: La Repubblica

Translator: Cristina Ambrosi

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