On May 26, 2016, plans were announced to redevelop lungarno Acciaiuoli, which runs between the Ponte Vecchio and Ponte Santa Trinita.
The city intends to restore the popular promenade to its former glory thanks to a 1 million euro investment with a total of 350,000 euro donated by Lungarno Alberghi Srl, the Ferragamo family hotel and hospitality chain, and financial services company Palazzo Feroni Finanziaria. Utility companies Publiacqua S.p.A., Toscana Energia S.p.A., Telecom S.p.A. and SILFI S.p.A. will invest approximately 750,000 euro in the urban renewal project.
In its heyday back in the nineteenth century, the walkway was paved in stone. This project will replace the current asphalt with pietra forte, a type of sandstone mixed with reinforced concrete, the same used in via Tornabuoni. The footpaths will be widened, while space will remain for taxis and disabled access.
The project was presented to the press a day after the dramatic sinkhole in lungarno Torrigiani.
“We are presenting these plans at a difficult time for the city,” emphasized Florence mayor Dario Nardella. “Yesterday, lungarno Torrigiani ceded, practically the opposite of what this project will entail. This is why maintenance is fundamental and not improvised.”
“Lungarno Acciaiuoli has always been a characteristic and charming place of Florence’s historic centre,” commented Leonardo Ferragamo, president of the Lungarno Alberghi group. “We simply couldn’t remain indifferent to these plans to redevelop it.”
“Offering hospitality today more than ever means being at one with one’s destination,” stated Valeriano Antonioli, managing director of Lungarno Alberghi. “Knowing the city and instilling with it a healthy relationship made of understanding and love is the secret to genuine, consistent and stylish hospitality.”
The work is slated to begin in the autumn.