VENICE - The Royal Gardens of Venice, behind Piazza San Marco, reopened on 17 December after a complex restoration work promoted by the Venice Gardens Foundation and supported by Assicurazioni Generali. The return to the lagoon city of this place, always loved by the Venetians, has taken on a special meaning, a few weeks after the 'aqua granda' that for days has devastated the historic center and the islands. The inauguration was attended by Minister Dario Franceschini, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro and CEO of Generali Philippe Donnet.
The path of re-appropriation of the gardens - created within the Napoleonic reform project of the Marciana Area - began in December 2014 when, to counteract the progressive decay of the area, the bum and lurch dorm, the State Property Office and the Municipality granted the restoration and conservation project over time to the Venice Gardens Foundation. The Foundation made use of the work of the architects Paolo Pejrone, for the recovery of the garden, and Alberto Torsello for the architectural restoration and restoration of the greenhouse, taking up the designs of the architects Carlo Aymonino and Gabriella Barbini. The green areas cover an area of about 5 thousand square meters surrounded by water, overlooked by the Correr Museum, the Imperial rooms of the Royal Palace, the National Archaeological Museum and the Marciana Library. The redevelopment and subsequent maintenance (cost of 5.2 million euros, of which 3 allocated by Generali, 1 collected with private funds and 1 by Veritas) concerned the part specifically dedicated to the garden, the neoclassical pavilion, designed by architect Lorenzo Santi in the early nineteenth century, and all the functional and decorative furnishings.
The recovery also involved the restoration of the drawbridge, where the historical opening and closing mechanism was maintained to connect the gardens to Piazza San Marco, the reconstruction of the greenhouse composed of a central circular-plan pavilion, connected to the historian Cafehaus, and the small conservatory, which will house the collection of potted plants and garden maintenance equipment. Thanks to Veritas, which developed a project of sustainability and attention to water consumption, 18 toilets have also been set up. Numerous new plants have been planted and from next spring they will be a riot of colors and scents: 22 tall trees, 832 shrubs, 6,560 herbaceous plants, 3,150 bulbous plants and 68 climbing plants. "The Royal Gardens were a place of neglect, but thanks to a perfect restoration and the commitment of the voluntary sector and companies that donated important sums, they were returned to the city - stressed Franceschini -. It seems to me a beautiful story for all Italy is an example to be imitated for many ".