Maria Pia Funaroformer deputy mayor of the capital for the Democratic Party, subsequently a candidate with Avs in the last European elections after the split with the party of which she had been the most voted councilor in the administrative elections, intervenes in the debate on the creation of a single city by answering some of our questions.
Does the idea of a single city convince you?
«The area of Cosenza, Rende and Castrolibero represents a classic example of a single city, located downstream of a process of profound urban, territorial and demographic transformation that began in the Seventies under the pressure of strategic choices pursued with a forward-looking vision and coherence by the political class that then governed the urban area. Just think of the location of the University of Calabria in the Rende area. The birth of the University on the hills of Arcavacata is the fundamental event that triggered plans for social, economic and territorial planning developments that promoted and favored the epochal changes that matured in the following years.
To better understand its scope, it is sufficient to refer to the demographic and territorial dynamics recorded in the three urban areas between 1971 and 2024. The current configuration, determined by a progressive territorial expansion of the capital city both towards the north (Rende) and towards the west (Castrolibero), is characterised by a settlement development without interruption, effectively cancelling the borders between the three cities.
That said, I will answer you. The idea of a single city convinces me. On a logical and prospective level it arouses enthusiasm and perplexity which, however, cannot penalize its progress. It is a great opportunity for growth not only for the urban area, but also for the whole of Calabria. And let me say, the attempts to slow down this process are the result of sterile parochialism and political short-sightedness.
What do you find objectionable in the project approved by the Regional Council?
“There is an original sin: the Omnibus law of the Region, which modified the procedures to arrive at the merger project of the three Municipalities of Cosenza, Rende and Castrolibero, excluding the municipal councils from the process of promoting mergers. However, art. 15 of the TUEL states verbatim in paragraph 1 “According to articles 117 and 133 of the Constitution, the regions can modify the territorial constituencies of the municipalities after hearing the populations concerned, in the forms provided for by regional law.” And the referendum is one of the institutions of direct democracy, so, although consultative, it is intended as a preventive tool to “hear the populations concerned”. It should also be remembered that in the session of 26 July last, the Regional Council, in almost all of its representatives, expressed a favorable vote on the proposed Law on the merger of the three Municipalities, with a postponement of the dissolution of the Municipal Councils to 2027 (effectively extending the time to start all those actions necessary to overcome the complexities arising from the integration of the three entities). And is the assembly of Palazzo Campanella not the expression of a legitimately elected political representation? »