Pisa: the “Nuova Periferia Polivalente” has opened! (Italy)

international | miscellaneous | news report Friday July 06, 2012 21:42 by Italy Calling - http://italycalling.wordpress.com

After being left derelict and neglected for 6 years, during which the only intervention by the local authorities has been the building of a wall around the old changing rooms which turned them into a dangerous sewer, Pisa’s sports centre Polisportiva della Fontina has come back to life, and being put to use by hundreds of people of all ages who want a space to hang out and practice sports freely.

The centre has been revamped thanks to the work and donations of hundreds of local volunteers coming from all backgrounds: it’s been a month and a half of hard work, of weeding and clearing up, cutting down plants that had spread to the pavements, cleaning and renovating. The new self-managed sports centre is now open to everyone: another building rescued from financial speculation by local authorities and private companies trying to cover everything up with cement and take public space away from the local residents.

The opening ceremony was officially held on Sunday 1st July with all sorts of sports activities, shows and gigs, food and exhibitions, and, of course, the screening of the European football final. The event was attended by hundreds of local residents coming from all backgrounds: unemployed and precarious workers, elderly people, families, factory workers, young people: all together to show that building grassroots change is necessary and possible!

Occupy Pisa carries on the same path it had showed months ago: the path of people ready to take back spaces, manage them collectively and organise them differently to make diversity a collective enrichment.

For a chronological background on the Occupy Pisa’s growth click on the Occupy Pisa tag on my blog: http://italycalling.wordpress.com/tag/occupy-pisa/

Original published by InfoAut Pisa.