Could 'Save Milan' bill revive city's stricken building sector?

The Italian parliament has approved a bill to change town planning laws to resolve a construction stalemate in Italy's financial capital Milan caused by dozens of investigations by prosecutors.

The bill, dubbed 'Save Milan', was submitted by the ruling center-right majority with the endorsement of the main center-left opposition PD party. Following the clearance in the lower house, it still has to be approved by the Senate.

Milan had been on a roll since 2015, when the Expo international exhibition helped to transform the city into a hotspot for developers. Since then, it has attracted more than $30 billion of real estate investment.

But complaints from Milan residents objecting to the mushrooming of multi-story buildings have triggered investigations into alleged abuses in the fast-tracking of building permits, with more than 100 active or planned building sites having stalled.

The new bill effectively gives a green light to the faster and less expensive procedures for builders adopted by the Milan municipality so far.

Federico Filippo Oriana, who heads Italy's real estate developers and promoters association Aspesi, welcomed the decision.

"The interpretative nature of this law avoids the risk of further conflict, and sets the foundations for a rapid resumption of real estate and building activities in Milan that have been blocked for over a year," Oriana said.

The bill means that new high rises can continue to be built as replacements for even single-story buildings via a simpler renovation permit, instead of needing the approval of a more comprehensive new building plan.

A project deemed a new build requires the developer to make more onerous social investments, such as large green spaces or bike lanes.

The charges payable to cities for a new build are at least three times higher than those incurred for a conversion, according to current regulations. Carrying out a conversion also brings tax breaks.

Giancarlo Tancredi, the councilor in charge of urban renewal for Milan, welcomed the clarity.

"Now I hope that the climate will become calmer and that good sense will prevail on all sides," he said.

The new bill should unfreeze building projects by addressing alleged urban planning law offenses. However, many of the investigations also allege fraud and influence peddling by several suspects, and will therefore continue, according to legal and judicial sources.