by Margie Miklas

Created on: August 17, 2010

Rome’s famous Colosseum is nearly 2000 years old and in serious need of a restoration. When a piece of mortar fell through some netting in May 2010, the Italian government decided to push forward with a 32 million dollar (25 million Euro) restoration project.  Since Italy is very much affected by the current economic recession, they are actively advertising for a private corporate sponsor to fund this project at 100 percent.

Reuters reports that this is the first time an EU country is seeking a private sponsor to completely pay for a public monument restoration.  The Undersecretary of Italy’s Heritage Ministry, Francesco Giro, stated “it’s a remarkable experiment.” Italy, having the EU’s largest debt in 2009, 115.8 percent of their gross domestic product, is affected by the current economic climate more seriously than most other EU countries. To help cut the deficit, the Italian government recently passed a large two-year spending cut. The Culture Ministry funds the maintenance costs of the city’s monuments, and its budget was cut by $233 million for the next three years.

In exchange for funding 100 percent of the cost of the Colosseum restoration, Italy is offering the sponsor various advertising rights including: its name and logo on the Colosseum admission tickets, its name and logo on posters no larger than 8.2 feet at the base of the Colosseum, ability to conduct its own private guided tours of the Colosseum and exclusive film rights of the entire restoration process.

Proposals are being accepted through October, with a goal of having funding secured within a year, and work to begin on the project in 2011. The winning sponsor will have the authority to hire the companies that will do the work, and numerous firms from America to Asia have expressed an interest.

Francesco Giro said the project should be completed by 2013, and that the Colosseum should be completely clean and “fully accessible to tourists.”  The exterior of the monument will be completely cleaned of the dark soot from car exhausts of Rome’s heavy daily traffic. The goal is also to conduct multimedia tours of unexplored areas, for example, the chambers where the gladiators and animals waited prior to battle. The highest terraces with the best views will be accessible to visitors once the project is finished.

Currently only 35 percent of the Colosseum has been accessible, due to safety issues.  After the restoration, visitors will be able to tour the whole interior, Giro stated.  The Colosseum will remain open to tourists during the restoration, since the remodeling will be completed, one area at a time. Over five million tourists a year visit the Colosseum, generating $47 million in ticket sales. The money is used to maintain the other monuments in Rome.

Mayor Gianni Alemanno of Rome said, “this is a clear precedent. We hope this method can be used for other large restoration projects.”  There have been several recent collapses at Rome’s Forum area, raising a focus on the safety of those buildings also. Culture Minister Sandro Bondi agrees with the mayor, saying he hopes to be able to pursue other monument restorations using the same financial strategy with private sponsors.

www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66R3NY20100728

www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2010/08/07 /cash_poor_italy_to_sell_ad_space_at_colosseum/

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