AC Milan are expected to encounter some opposition in their pursuit of building a new stadium in San Donato, according to a report.
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Calciomercato.com confirm that Milan’s plan it to build a large entertainment area modelled on American stadiums. That means it will not just be a 70,000-seat stadium on the 108,000 gross square metre site, but also a Milan HQ, museum, club shop, hotel restaurant and other facilities will be built.
The area where the club want to build lies in total decay. In a video from Il Cittadino di Lodi, you can see waste of all types, an abandoned ruin, tall weeds and widespread drug dealing.
The area is between the motorway and the San Donato railway station. The San Francesco area, until a few years ago, was not like this – it was used and cultivated and it will soon have new life, after the project for the new stadium has been made official.
The Council of San Donato has indicated that it is already ready to move, hiring qualified consultants to evaluate all aspects of feasibility. For the mayor of Lodi, Andrea Furegato of the PD, this is an opportunity to be seized. The president of the Province, Fabrizio Santantonio, thinks the same.
However, there is no lack of opposition towards the project. A group of residents expressed concern about the impact the new structure could have on the landscape.
First of all on an ancient village and an abbey. After La Maura, a part of San Donato is also opposed. “In Europe we have just approved a law, the Nature Restoration Law, which provides the recovery and conservation of European ecosystems, not their further destruction,” said Maria Angela Danzì of the M5S.
The 5 Star Senator, Elena Sironi, adds: “It is unthinkable that we would think of pouring concrete, defacing a precious area included in the Monaci valley and near the Cistercian abbey and the medieval village of Chiaravalle.”
