Left abandoned for 50 years, the medieval village of San Cresci, 20 miles from Florence, is about to be brought back to life.
Covering 657 hectares, San Cresci consists of Villa La Quiete, home to Fondazione Europea Cammino Futuro, an association promoting a sustainable future; three villas once owned by the Gondi family, historic Medici bankers; and eight farmhouses.
The plan to revive the village, which is expected to take three years and cost 30 million euro, was recently outlined at a conference by its creators, Bruno Dei and Roberta Zivolo. In restoring San Cresci, they hope to draw people to live in the village and ‘improve quality of life together’.
To date, architect Annalisa Baracchi, medical experts, sociologists and individuals with experience in similar projects in Italy and from overseas have loaned their expertise to the San Cresci project.
One of the projects included within the plans is to donate a hectare of land to every baby born in San Cresci.
