| Parco Papa Giovanni Paolo II (formerly Parco delle Basiliche) | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Parco Papa Giovanni Paolo II  Parco Papa Giovanni Paolo II | |
| Type | Urban park |
| Location | Zone 1 ofMilan,Italy |
| Coordinates | 45°27′N9°11′E / 45.45°N 9.18°E /45.45; 9.18 |
| Area | 40,700 square metres (438,000 sq ft) |
| Created | 1956 |
| Operated by | Comune di Milano |
| Status | Open all year (usually from 6 am to 11 pm, depending on season) |
Parco Papa Giovanni Paolo II ("Pope John Paul II Park"),[1] best known by its historic nameBasilicas Park (Parco delle Basiliche inItalian)[2] is a city park ofMilan,Italy, located inZone 1. It owes its name to the fact that it connects two majorbasilicas, theBasilica of San Lorenzo and theBasilica of Sant'Eustorgio. The park has an overall area of 40.700 m2, bisected by Via Molino delle Armi, one of the avenues comprising theCerchia dei Navigliring road (this was originally intended to be adapted into an underpass, but the plan was never implemented).[1]
In 1925, the authorities of Milan started a revitalization project for the area surrounding the Basilica of San Lorenzo and the nearbyColonne di San Lorenzo (a doublecolonnade that is one of the majorRoman ruins in Milan). At the time, the area had marshes of polluted water produced by thetanneries located in the adjacentPiazza della Vetra, as well as old buildings in a state of decay.[1] The area was cleared in 1934, but it was only afterWorld War II that it was actually redesigned as a green public space. ArchitectsPier Fausto Bagatti Valsecchi andAntonio Grandi, enrolled in 1956,[1] conceived the new park as a sort of archaeological promenade connecting the two basilicas, the Colonne di San Lorenzo, and the ruins of a Romanamphitheatre.
The area surrounding the park and the Colonne di San Lorenzo is one of the most popular night-life districts of Milan, with a number of bars, pubs, disco clubs, and other venues of the so-called "Milanesemovida". In the last decades of the 20th century, security issues were repeatedly reported, includingvandalisms,drug trafficking, excessive noise and abusive parking.[3] These problems were addressed in the park renovation that took place in 2000, on the occasion of theGreat Jubilee; specifically, the whole area of the park was fenced and security cameras were installed. On the same occasion, the green area was also partially redesigned, and the name of the park was formally changed to "Parco PapaPaolo Giovanni II".[4]
Besides its architectural and archaeological sites of interests (i.e., the two basilicas and the Roman ruins), the park is renowned for its ornamental trees; tree species that can be found in the park include several species ofmaples (Acer) such asash-leaved maple (A. negundo),Norway maple (A. platanoides), andsilver maple (A. saccharinum),European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus),cherry plum (Prunus cerasifera),European beech (Fagus sylvatica),French oak (Quercus robur), several species ofelm (Ulmus),black poplar (Populus nigra),European black pine (Pinus nigra),London plane (Platanus × hispanica), andpagoda tree (Sophora japonica).
