‘GIARDINETTI REALI IN TATTERS, SQUALOR AT ST MARK’S’

A merciless article, almost reportage, out today in the pages of the Gazzettino di Venezia written by Roberta Brunetti. The headline is emblematic: ‘Giardinetti Reali in tatters, squalor at St Mark’s’, with accompanying photos of run-down areas and pieces of fallen and abandoned marble. ‘The promenade in front of the former Giardinetti Reali (Royal Gardens), at St Mark’s, is less and less royal’, writes Brunetti. ‘Among shabby paving, balustrades with pieces missing and filth behind the garden walls, the spectacle is extremely scruffy.’ The area is run down and, for now, the city council has sent some technicians who have resolved the problem by unrolling red and white building site tape to indicate the dangers. The toilets are also out of order. Traders in the area have been complaining for some time but, given the way things stand, without any great results.