This is the surprising result of a preliminary area survey promoted by the Mobility, Transport and Environment Department, Municipality of Milan, which was organized by MeglioMilano in collaboration with AISTP (Italian Association of Development and Professional Skills Transfer), ANTEA (National Association for the Active Third Age for Solidarity) and AUSER (Association for Self-Management of Services and Solidarity). It had thus followed the activity of the Municipality of Milan, initiated in 2003 and dedicated to the environmental situation of the city, and which had led to the publication of an extensive “Report on the State of the Environment in Milan”. MeglioMilano contributed to this with a study along with the city’s social partner organisations regarding the expectations and prospects of the Local Agenda 21.

The Urban Quality Monitoring programme is part of the open public participation envisaged by the Local Agenda 21 process launched by the Municipality of Milan, via the active retirement associations, whose long hoped-for collaboration became a reality.

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There are in fact 44 volunteers who have covered 60 kilometres of 274 city streets over 22 areas termed “isole ambientali” (“environmental islands”) in order to evaluate the conditions of the "urban landscape" published in the Report on the Urban Habitat of Milan that the Municipality of Milan is to present in December. The presence of illegally-parked cars, cleaning of streets and green areas, the condition of 2,500 buildings, the maintenance of pavements, streets and signposts and, in 54 green areas, the maintenance of playground equipment, benches and fenced-in dog parks.

It has been proposed to ascertain the reality and extent of the feeling of widespread “decay” reported by many of Milan’s citizens, and to suggest what prospective remedies are needed and where. These results can be monitored over time, as provided for in the Agenda 21 strategy of the Municipality of Milan.

The initial data collected confirm the impression of poor cleanliness and maintenance, in particular regarding pavements; the lack of observance of reserved parking restrictions, which is a real and widespread problem, and dog faeces, which despite numerous information campaigns still pose a problem, particularly in green areas.
The next step is to examine in more detail the results of these analyses jointly with the Agency for Mobility and the Environment of the Municipality of Milan.