It will be a veritable «research citadel». It will be built on an area of over four hectares, between via San Leonardo, via Paradigna and the motorway, and will be entirely dedicated to pharmaceutical experimentation under the «Chiesi» label. The project, which will have to be approved by the city council, was presented yesterday in the Urban Planning Commission and has garnered bipartisan consensus. The Parma-based pharmaceutical company with international growth has therefore decided to invest in its local area: Parma, in fact. Officially it is called «New integrated industrial and research center - Chiesi Farmaceutici» and is located on an «expansion industrial and artisan area». The new Chiesi citadel will be built in the area between via San Leonardo, via Paradigna and the motorway. Here, on the 41,666 square meters of surface owned by the company (they were purchased in the second half of the 1980s), offices and laboratories will be built, even on several floors, where research at an international level will be conducted (neonatal diseases, pulmonary , senile dementia and others). In addition to these, an auditorium for congress activities will also be created. These are important investments not only from a laboratory point of view, but also from an architectural and personnel point of view: we are talking about "several tens of millions of euros". Access to the hub will take place not via the motorway, but from via Paradigna. From the A1, the new road will be separated by a 40-metre "green belt" as required by law for dual carriageway suburban arteries. «It is an important and commendable initiative not only because it redevelops an important area of the city - said the president of the Commission, Franco Bertorelli -, but also because a company that is the flagship of Parma confirms the will to remain anchored to our territory, bringing benefits also in terms of employment». «Certainly Chiesi deserves applause from the minority because it has decided not to relocate, but to invest in Parma», continued the councilor of the Ulivo for Parma, Franco Torreggiani. Once the building permits have been obtained, the works could begin as early as the first months of 2008. Another point addressed during the session was that of the «ex Rossi e Catelli» area, which overlooks via Sidoli and via Budellungo and which will soon be "refurbished" by a private entity. "It is a significant redevelopment not only because the buildings will be built according to energy saving criteria - explains the councilor for urban planning, Francesco Manfredi -, but also because it will make an important green lung available to the neighborhood". We then spoke of Panocchia and the new redevelopment project of an area contiguous to the town which covers a total area of 56,000 square meters (of which 8,400 is gross floor area). The project is linked to the past and for this reason the councilor for urban planning, Francesco Manfredi, speaks of a "return to traditions" which vaguely recalls "Victorian England". The houses will in fact be built in an elegant and ancient style. _x0002_ New Chiesi Pharmaceutical Center «focuses» on research. Francesca Lombardi - The Parma Gazette of 04/12/2007 p. 8
