Bulldozers at the former restaurant on Vesuvius: the pool, fountain, and large, illegal pergola were demolished.

Bulldozers have been deployed in Boscotrecase, on Via Cifelli, to clear away a series of structures erected without building permits near the volcanic slopes. The operation affected the appurtenances of the former "Paraviso al Vesuvio" restaurant, a building overlooking the spectacular panorama of the Gulf of Naples but located in a context subject to extremely sensitive constraints.

The intervention was ordered by the Torre Annunziata Public Prosecutor's Office in execution of a sentence issued by the Oplonti Court dating back to 2012, confirming the local judiciary's hard line against the phenomenon of unauthorized construction.

The artifacts that ended up under the rubble

Three separate structures, built to serve the former restaurant business, were targeted by judicial authorities. Vehicles razed a finished pool measuring approximately 18 square meters, a tarp placed over a pre-existing wooden frame measuring approximately 100 square meters, and a monumental circular stone fountain, located within an ornamental flowerbed.

These works altered the balance of a unique place, transforming a protected green space into a space for private commercial use without permits.

A jungle of environmental and seismic constraints

The Via Cifelli area encompasses almost every type of protection provided for by Italian law. The territory has been declared of notable public interest since 1961 and is included in the Landscape Plan of the Vesuvian Municipalities. It is also classified as a category two seismic zone and falls within the so-called "red zone" of high volcanic risk.

Specifically, the land where the structures stood is located within the perimeter of the Vesuvius National Park and is classified as an "Integral Protection Area," the highest level of natural protection possible, with hydrogeological risk profiles certified by the Basin Authority.

The protocol with the Park Authority

The demolition was carried out automatically, without burdening the municipal coffers or waiting for the voluntary compliance of the convicted, thanks to the use of funds allocated directly by the Vesuvius National Park Authority. This collaboration is based on a specific memorandum of understanding signed between the Authority and the Public Prosecutor's Office, headed by the Torre del Greco magistrates.
For investigators, the enforced execution of the final sentences represents a fundamental step not only in healing the wounds inflicted on the landscape, but also in sending a deterrent signal to protect the entire Vesuvian area.