Once the restoration works finished, on the 20th of January the renewed Piazza Cardinale Niccolò was officially inaugurated, with a definitely more welcoming appearance.
The square is located within the historical city walls. Lined with 17th-century buildings to the north and south, it is bordered at the end by one side of the Monastery church and by the wall of the Conservatory of San Niccolò. In the centre of the square there is a fountain surrounded by stone beds and a pedestrian area. A number of municipal offices, a primary school and the Conservatory, which includes all grades from preschool to secondary school level, make this a very central and busy area. The project to renovate the Square architecturally made it more accessible and safer for the many pedestrians, especially when children are coming out of school.
The regeneration project has not introduced any changes to the structure of the Square, but aims, rather, to enhance its historical and architectural features, transforming a simple place of transit into a lovable place in the city that is completely integrated with its surrounding space: this is achieved by repaving in stone the central section and roads of the square and restoration of the fountain through a new led-lighting.
As far as the green area is concerned, the lindens, which were in a very bad condition, were replaced with smaller ornamental evergreen oaks, more suited to the surroundings.
The enhancement of the surrounding buildings, from a commercial point of view and in terms of restoration of the facades, will help to give new life to the square.