«For too long Reggio has lived with unfinished works, lost opportunities and projects left on paper. Situations that have fueled a widespread sense of mistrust among citizens and the perception of progressive administrative and political abandonment.” Peppe Pinto, provincial commissioner of the DC with Rotondi, starts from this premise and relaunches the challenge to mayor Cannizzaro: «Today I believe the time has come to transform these critical issues into opportunities, starting a new season of relaunch based on planning and valorising the potential of the territory. I believe among the most relevant challenges for Reggio is the completion of the Via Lia-Vito, an infrastructure historically awaited by the residents of the Vito neighborhood and surrounding areas for over 40 years and never completed. Its construction would not only represent a response to the mobility needs of the neighborhood, but would constitute a strategic work for the entire city, guaranteeing a rapid and safe connection with the Pentimele Hill, one of the most evocative and identifying places in the Reggio area”. And regarding the Pentimele hill, Pinto writes to mayor Canizzaro that he shares «the vision relating to the construction of the cable car connecting to the hill, which would represent not only an extraordinary tourist attraction, but also a real mobile viewpoint over the city and the Strait».
Over the years Pinto has promoted various proposals aimed at improving the road network of hilly and peripheral areas. «I am thinking of the connection of Via Veglia with the University and with Via Lia-Vito itself, the alternative road between Sant’Antonino and the junction of the Mediterranean University, useful for alleviating traffic and guaranteeing alternative routes during events and demonstrations, as well as the Eremo-Botte-Vito connection, fundamental both for the presence of the orthopedic healthcare facility and for the Basilica dell’Eremo, a destination for thousands of faithful every year. All these proposals – claims Pinto – find their natural point of synthesis in Via Lia-Vito, transforming it into a strategic infrastructure capable of networking neighbourhoods, services and places of historical, cultural and religious interest, contributing to the construction of a more modern, efficient and safe city. The Pentimele Hill represents an extraordinary heritage that deserves to be returned to the enjoyment of citizens and visitors. From the top of its panoramas it dominates the city and the Strait, offering a unique scenario that combines history, nature and identity. It is no coincidence that in 2022 the program “Linea Verde Life” told the general public about this place. Journalist Daniela Ferolla was able to capture the authentic soul of the hill, defining it as a special place, while underlining its difficulty of access. This description perfectly highlights the paradox of Pentimele: an extraordinary place, admired by all, but still penalized by insufficient connections. The hill, included among the Sites of Community Importance for its high environmental value, also hosts the historic fortifications which, once the recovery interventions are completed, could become the fulcrum of a large-scale tourist, cultural and naturalistic project. Unfortunately, this area also bears the signs of the unfinished. I am referring to the two reservoirs built as part of the “Reggio Decree”: the first, located upstream of the Via Lia-Vito, whose work stopped in 2006; the second, near Via Lupardini, today in a state of abandonment and vandalised, despite having been designed to guarantee the water service not only to Via Lupardini, but also to the fortifications and the entire hilly area through a relaunch system”.