EURISPES PRESENTS THE PROJECT FOR THE REALIZATION OF THE PORTO HUB OF PALERMO AND FOR THE REQUALIFICATION OF THE SOUTH-EAST COAST
The project of technical and economic feasibility of the Hub port of Palermo and the redevelopment of the south-eastern coast was presented at Palazzo d’Orleans, the seat of the Sicilian Region’s presidency.
The President of Eurispes, Gian Maria Fara, opening the meeting, commented: “It is the contribution that Eurispes, two years after the opening of the Institute’s headquarters in the Sicilian capital, wanted to give to Sicily, in the awareness of the great potential of the territory and the need for an adequate infrastructure capable of accompanying development paths “. Nicola Piazza, coordinator of the scientific committee of the Eurispes Sicilian headquarters, introducing the presentation work, underlined “the need for an interaction between all the subjects, both institutional and private, able to identify and promote solutions to overcome the employment crisis that affects the Mezzogiorno, in a team game that respects everyone’s prerogatives “.
The Hub port project, illustrated by Giovan Battista Rubino, member of the Eurispes Scientific Committee, is one of those that would transform the city, making it regain its central role in the Mediterranean.
“The construction of the Hub port – explains Rubino – due to its technical characteristics, would make Palermo the most important port in southern Europe, capable of handling 16 million containers a year, compared to 5 of the port of Valencia, the 3 million that of Gioia Tauro and about 2 million of the ports of Barcelona and Genoa “.
The work, which has a cost of about 5 billion euro, when fully operational, would give work to 435 thousand people, and could be financed mainly with private capital. “The timing of implementation – observes Saverio Romano, Head of the Mezzisporno Department of Eurispes – is three years, from the issue of authorizations, linked to the insertion of the work in the plan of national and strategic. Obviously a strong collaboration between the institutions will be needed, but the economic return that would have a positive impact not only on Palermo and on Sicily but on the whole of the South “. A theme connected with that of the construction of the commercial port, is the environmental one and the President Fara clarifies: “The construction of this infrastructure is inextricably linked with the redevelopment of the south-eastern coast of Palermo, which has been abandoned for years. The project, which would allow the fruition and bathing of large stretches of coastline, would also restore the view of the sea to that part of town “.
Unanimous appreciation of the project by the Mayor of Palermo, Leoluca Orlando, for whom “a work like this involves the Italian system but also the European institutions. The Municipality is ready for a lay confrontation on the project, and in any case we appreciate the method followed by the Eurispes “. The comment of Gianfranco Micciché, President of the Sicilian Regional Assembly, was also positive: “The one from the Hub port of Palermo presented by Eurispes is a winning idea, revolutionary for Palermo, which would make Sicily a pole of great importance and, for what is , can count on all my political support “. Nello Musumeci, President of the Sicilian Region, declared himself “open to comparison, because the work is suggestive in its planning: the Mediterranean has returned to being a sea of trade and commerce and we must intercept those arriving from the Suez Canal, with adequate infrastructure and services. To appreciate the innovative and authoritative Eurispes initiative: by the end of December 2018 new elements will have to be acquired from the comparison with all the various subjects involved “.
The technical data of the project proposal The port area is represented by a platform connected to the coast at the height of the Bandita and that forms with it a bay about 300 meters wide and three kilometers long, for water sports and with 200 places for pleasure boats in transit.
Along the bay is expected to build a large beach, partly free and partly equipped and, upstream of it, outdoor sports facilities for 10 hectares, an urban park on the sea and plenty of space for leisure with dining options and shops. In the space between this area and the state 113, the project includes a scenic road that starts with a new bridge on the Orio to reach the Bandita.Downstream of the road there is a cycle path and a running track for three kilometers that, through a cycle bridge, reach the marina.
The port, which has 9 km of docks and a square of about 200 hectares, is a port-canal with a north-west entrance and exit to the south-east and is directly connected to a 100-hectare port. It has a depth ranging from 18.5 to 27 meters and is equipped with all services. A hotel, a residence, a multi-storey car park and an 8 thousand square meter office space have been planned in the area of the retroport.
The work, which would have a cost of 5 billion euro and which would give work to over 435 thousand people, could be financed mainly with private capital.
