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In just over a week, the fundraising initiative launched by the Municipality of Bologna for the restoration of the two towers in the center of the city, the Garisenda and the Asinelli Tower, has already reached the target of 800,000 euros initially set by the mayor Matteo Lepore. Due to the excellent results, the target was increased to three million euros, which should be achieved in the next few months.
Lepore said many donations came from businesses, but private individuals also participated. The initiative is part of the so-called “Art Bonus”, a tax relief introduced in 2014 by the then Minister of Culture Dario Franceschini, which guarantees a tax deductibility of 65% in the three years following the donation. It is not clear whether all of the 800,000 euros mentioned by Lepore have actually already been paid: the mayor said that for now the initiative has “collected very important donations and pledges, I am talking about pledges because the transfers will arrive”.
The fundraiser was launched on November 24 last year, mainly to finance the restoration of the Garisenda Tower, which has been faltering more than usual in recent months. The Garisenda is just over 48 meters high and is located next to the Asinelli Tower, which is 97 meters high. Both are still pending. From the end of October, the municipality blocked traffic and cordoned off the area around the two towers to monitor the fluctuations more closely.
The community’s fundraising effort was also supported by singers Gianni Morandi and Cesare Cremonini, both originally from the Bologna area. Lepore had said that private resources would allow “more flexibility” in the restoration work on both towers. The municipality had referred to another similar initiative, a fundraising campaign launched in 2015 to restore the Neptune Fountain, which raised almost 480,000 euros.
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Meanwhile, preparations are underway to build a containment structure around the Garisenda, which represents the first phase of the municipality’s plan to secure the building. The project involves the construction of a “protective belt to contain debris that could arise in the event of a possible collapse”, consisting of various metal modules placed around the perimeter of the tower: they will be colored red, anchored to the ground and connected to each other . The facility is expected to be ready for occupancy in February 2024.
Source: Municipality of Bologna