Varese to merge with Como, Lecco and Monza

Varese with Como, Lecco and Monza. This is the proposal of the Council for Local Autonomies (CLA), which is chaired by the President of Milan Province, Guido Podestà, and which is made up of all of the presidents of the other provinces in Lombardy. As Podestà stated in an article published today, Wednesday 26 September, in the newspaper Corriere della Sera, the proposal has been drawn up by the council, and is a suggestion of how Lombardy might be divided up, following the parameters based on a government law: at least 350,000 inhabitants and an area of 2500 km². (see photo: the new map, drawn by Corriere della Sera)

And according to the CLA map, this is how the subdivision will be done. Milan will become a metropolitan area; Pavia, Bergamo and Brescia will remain unchanged. Despite not respecting legal parameters, an exclusion from the law will be requested for Mantova and Sondrio, because of the structures of their provinces; Lodi and Cremona will be united; and a super-province will be created in the north west of Lombardy, consisting, namely, of Varese, Como, Lecco and Monza. This will become a sort of very large, Pedemontana area, with a very irregular structure, the unification of which will satisfy the legal parameters. According to Podestà, it was not possible to request other exclusions for Varese, there were not sufficient grounds for the independence of a province that, according to the conditions established, is too small.

Now, the next stage will be on 2 October, when the Council for Local Autonomies is meeting. On that day, the final proposal should be produced, which the Region will then present to Rome. It is difficult to say now whether the indications of individual councils in Varese Province, such as Busto Arsizio and Saronno (who want to join the “metropolitan area”), will be accepted.