New casino for Milan by 2015?

Calls are growing in Milan for a new casino to be opened in order to help fund World Expo 2015. The city's bid won through in March but almost immediately prompted discussion about better funding for the land mark event .

Marco Mariani, the mayor of Monza, on the northern edge of Milan, has proposed that the magnificent Villa Reale (Royal Villa) would be an ideal venue for new casino. The palace is owned by the town and is suffering somewhat from a lack of investment in its upkeep.

That idea has been enthusiastically endorsed by Achille Colombo Clerici, the president of Assoedilizia, the builders' association. He belevies a casino would solve a lot of problems of public finance. He said: "In addition to helping the economy of the city , it could be a strategic choice in light of the need to ensure a central factor propelling the continuity of development for the Expo".

He continued :"we need to focus on tourism if the Expo mechanism is to really work, and in particular on luxury. I'm not thinking just of a casino but also of boutiques, a fivestar hotel and a fitness centre. A centre of luxury in an 18 th century palace would be a jewel unique in the world." The charmain of Casinò di Campione, in the italian enclave beyond the Swiss border, has already expressed an interest in opening a branch of the casino in Brianza, the region directly to north of Milan where is located. Campione seems to be shaking off the problems surrounding its recostruction and relaunchand is getting a better share of the business from the wealthiest city in Italy. While there may not be enough political backing to allow an entirely new license to be granted in Monza it is more likely that permission can be found to extend Campione's existing one.

Of course, not everyone supports the idea. The alderman responsible for education , parks and the Villa Reale in Monza, Pierfranco Maffè , said: "We have other plans for the Villa Reale, plans of a cultural nature. Monza certainly has no need for a casino."