San Siro, a crossroads of investigation and politics. The stadium issue has now been postponed until September, and Pella and Marinoni's ambitions have surfaced in chat rooms.
July 20, 2025
The councilor for urban planning Giancarlo Tancredi, 74 years old, and the mayor Giuseppe Sala, 67
Milan, July 20, 2025 – Regarding the San Siro project, an initial compromise has been reached between Mayor Giuseppe Sala and the Democratic Party: apparently, barring any surprises, the resolution will not be submitted to the City Council either tomorrow, as expected before the new investigation into urban planning erupted, or by the end of July . It will be discussed again in September. This postponement, politically, meets the Democrats' request to take time, in light of the investigation, before passing the measure.
But it's painless from a substantive standpoint because it doesn't jeopardize compliance with the final deadline of November 10, 2025, the date from which the architectural constraint on the second ring road will come into effect, making it impossible to proceed with any work plan on the system. Further answers will have to arrive between now and tomorrow to determine whether Sala's second term can continue. "His decision will depend 90% on the answers the Democrats give this weekend," a Sala loyalist responds when asked how much influence the Democrats ' stance will have on the mayor's decision to remain in office. It's possible that the mayor and a delegation from the largest majority party will meet again this afternoon. Yesterday, Sala met with the city councilors of his civic list and spent much of the day at home, preparing the speech he will give tomorrow, Monday, July 21st, in the Council.
It will be a speech of pride: he will focus on the contribution he has made to Milan over the past 15 years, first as sole commissioner of Expo 2015 and then as mayor. He will then emphasize the need to march together in the final two years to best finish all the agenda items. But the tone of the final lines of his speech will depend, as mentioned, on the responses of a Democratic Party that yesterday closed in conclave: first, a meeting between the city secretariat, the Lombardy secretariat, and parliamentarians. Then further discussions between the secretariats. The Democrats want to prevent Sala's resignation at all costs. But they are demanding signs of discontinuity from him, and not just on San Siro.
Hence the statement from Alessandro Capelli, Milanese secretary of the Democratic Party: "We want to continue alongside the mayor, knowing that many important things have been done for the city since 2011 , but that today, in a changed social context, it is necessary to invest in new policies that put social and environmental issues, opportunity, and equality at the center."
Not just the "Metropolitan Nodes and Gateways," meaning the areas between the city and its hinterland, or the area "of the railway yards and the Olympic Village ." Among the "targets" of that " corruption pact ," as the Milan prosecutor's office calls it, were the San Siro stadium and the neighborhood of the same name. This is another open front, and one that could lead to developments in the major investigation with 74 people under investigation, including Sala and Councilor Giancarlo Tancredi, who is ready to resign. Chats analyzed by the Guardia di Finanza reveal the words of Giuseppe Marinoni, who until three months ago headed the Landscape Commission, who prosecutors called "a body at the center" of the "system of real estate speculation supported" by a "manipulated interpretation of the rules," "conflicts of interest," and "false representations of the law and reality." This is in addition to alleged bribes "disguised" as consultancy fees.
The Meazza puzzle"On Thursday I'll formally try to ask... the councilor to see if he can give me a preview, then I'll let you know," Marinoni wrote to Federico Pella, manager of J+S, on January 15, 2024, referring to the possibility of obtaining information from Tancredi, when "a project for the renovation of San Siro" was under discussion. The topic of the Meazza frequently comes up in the exchanges of messages between the Marinonis and Pella . As recently as September 25, Pella told Marinoni that they should discuss "stadium timing." On January 20, he had already pointed out that "we need a serious interlocutor with the Municipality." A "large number of WhatsApp messages ," the prosecutors note, "are focused on how to propose strategies for the renovations at the Meazza and the parking areas through Inter (a club not involved in the investigation), already a client of Pella."
Il Giorno
