PONTEDERA. Juggling among the trees, running near the swings, resting in the greenery but a stone’s throw from the center. And so Albereta o to Montagnolaas many call it a Pontedera, the public park near Corso Matteotti, becomes an open-air gym. Even better. A sporting and educational garrison, where both aspects, in fact two sides of the same coin, take to the field to fight degradation and unwanted guests. Sentinels of a new way of experiencing gardens, thanks to co-management between public administration and local sports clubs. The idea is not new but for Albereta it is the first time. And this path, studied for some time, can really become reality before the summer. It is the redevelopment project of the basketball court and the rooms available for children, complete with toilets, on which Juve Pontedera Basket is working to create a “small citadel” dedicated to basketball enthusiasts but not only, surrounded by nature . Democratic, popular, for everyone. «The intention is to restructure – says the Juventus president, Luca Belli – the small field at the end of the Albereta, the one after the games, and the little house next to it, to organize various basketball activities, such as tournaments, three-on-three matches, games even in the evening after dinner. But sport is only a tool that allows us to set up meeting opportunities and offer new proposals not only for our athletes but for the entire city.”
Desolate scene
In short, basketball will lead the way in a global redevelopment plan for the park. With the Pontederese sports club committing resources, betting and “inventing” a generous way to open up to the city and to respond to a need, that of intervening and securing this corner of greenery, deeply felt by the Pontederesi. So much so that the Municipality itself had declared, at the beginning of February 2024, after an episode of vandalism, not exactly isolated in recent years, the need to regenerate one of the places in the heart of Pontedera, often devastated by decay and dirt. The damage, with the forced opening of the door of the house and the waste scattered everywhere, was a desolate scene. But the park belongs to everyone, to children who can play, grow up in the company of their peers, be outdoors and socialise. And of the parents who choose it as a safe place to share experiences and compare notes with others. An oasis among the asphalt. A garden in need of protection which instead happened to be transformed into a scene of nocturnal raids and a shelter for the homeless.
Decoration project
The Municipality has always intervened to restore the environment and decorum but now there is more. Because the time is ripe for a turning point that not only wards off acts of gratuitous incivility but plans cutting-edge opportunities. «Our presence – continues Belli – will also be a guarantee against bad guys. The staff will be available to lay the foundations of an educational path that starts from basketball but transmits the values of collaboration and friendship beyond sport, which acts as a deterrent to those who behave incorrectly but which instead brings families and many kids from the city.”
Inclusive services
And to support this idea the project also involves the involvement of other subjects. «It is – explain the councilor for public works Mattia Belli and that to the social Carla Cocilova – of shared management which will see, with a view to creating inclusive and widespread services, the collaboration of the play center which is currently present in other parks in the city. Here the Arnera cooperative offers workshops and fun activities for children a few afternoons a week. The intention would be to extend the hours and include the Albereta as well.” A synergy between the administration and other local entities that tells of taking care of public spaces and socializing in a different way than usual.
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2024-04-27 08:37:42
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