Demolition of one of the notorious
Vele (Sails) buildings in the drug-ridden Naples district of
Scampia began on Monday.
The demolition of the Vela Gialla, or Yellow Sail, began at
10:16 am and was attended by Naples Mayor Gaetano Manfredi, the
deputy mayor and urban policies councillor, Laura Lieto, as well
as other local authorities and representatives of the Sails
Committee of residents.
The operation is part of a 'restyling' of the area which is
trying to make a civic comeback after years of being identified
with the Camorra mafia and drug pushing.
Vela Gialla is one of the Sails which were an iconic backdrop in
the hit Camorra TV show Gomorra (Gomorrah), based on Roberto
Saviano's expose' of the same name.
"Today is a truly beautiful day, important for Naples and
Scampia", said the mayor, explaining it was a "symbolic moment".
The mayor also remembered the victims of the collapse of a
gallery at another Sail, Vela Celeste, in which three people
died and 11 others were injured, including seven children.
Naples Prosecutor's Office is probing the collapse of the Vela
Celeste gallery that occurred last July.
Twelve new buildings will replace the Sails, whose design was
inspired by one of the fathers of modern architecture,
Swiss-French architect and designer Le Corbusier, each built to
house about 35 families.
The Vela Celeste will be the only Sail left standing out of the
seven designed by Francesco Di Salvo and built between the 1960s
and 70s.
The 'Restart' project to restyle Scampia is set to be completed
in 2027, but construction work on the first apartment buildings
set to replace the demolished Sails should be completed by
mid-2026, according to local authorities.
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