Lake variant, hotel in view in Castelnuovo: over 23 thousand cubic metres of structure

25 March 2025

From paper to reality, urban expansion in the lakeside area of Castelnuovo del Garda is making its way, starting with a hotel. It is a tongue of land one and a half kilometres long and about one kilometre deep as far as the Gardesana road, but extending far beyond it considering the still green land to the east of the road. Compared to other areas bordering the lake, the Castelnovese area is, for the time being, one of the least concrete-covered because the bulk of the building plans included in the old regulatory plans of the 1980s and 1990s have yet to be realised.

Allotment plans
At stake are hundreds of thousands of cubic metres of tourist-receptive, residential and commercial volume. Some subdivision plans have been started (such as the reconstruction, with enlargement, of the Migross supermarket and the residential district behind it), others have been at a standstill for years (the unfinished residence near the Pederzoli hospital), and still others are about to start. This is the case of the ‘Ca’ Lina' urban development plan: almost 23 thousand cubic metres of hotel structure on a plot of land measuring about 35 thousand square metres near the roundabout between the Gardesana road, Via Derna and Via Gasparina. The project is in the Region for the Environmental Impact Assessment, which will be followed by other technical steps before the building permits are issued.
The project has already undergone a modification on the recommendation of the Superintendence, which, in order to lighten the impact on the landscape, has prescribed separating the single large building originally planned into three bodies. The volume includes the 3,523 cubic metres of the Ca' Lina farmhouse and a bonus of 2,500 cubic metres (equal to 15% of the original volume) established by regional law.

The planning agreement
The planning agreement stipulated with the municipality is one of the six that concretised the ‘lake variant’ introduced in 2004 by the first Bernardi administration to reduce cubic metres by making agreements with private parties in order to arrive at the transfer of the Lake Park land: a green area of 40 hectares (at the moment only 10 already owned by the municipality) from the Ronchi locality, on the border with Gardaland, to the Campanello road on the border with Peschiera.
‘In 2004 we found ourselves with about 290 thousand cubic metres planned in the lake area and the objective was to halve it,’ recalls mayor Davide Sandrini, at the time in his first experience in the Council. We ended up keeping 160 thousand cubic metres in the area closest to the lake and moving 74 thousand to the east of the Gardesana, with an overall reduction of 20%. ‘The park is a lung that mitigates anthropisation and the building load. What was envisaged in the 1980s and 1990s cannot be removed at a stroke,’ he continues, ’rights have been generated and 20 years ago we chose to negotiate with private parties as per regional regulations.

The Lake Park
As for the park, reforestation began a few months ago with the Region's Forestry Services, but the project for its use and the funds are lacking. The park and the area's urban planning forecasts are inextricably linked: the Superintendency, before issuing opinions on the latter, is asking for clarification on the timetable for realising the former. Over the next few years, various settlements will be built around the park, including another 37 thousand cubic metres of hotel accommodation and 40 thousand for the ‘Gardaland bungalow village’ (project stopped in 2017), the latter being part of a 100 thousand cubic metre volume to be built to the east of the Gardesana road. The expansion of the ‘Del Garda Village’ campsite is also planned, as well as the creation of a new one in place of the Saima mechanical plant.
Other projects are added to the ‘lake variant’ agreements, such as the ‘Forte Polveriera’ residential subdivision in Via Piero Pederzoli, owned by the hospital, and a third supermarket to be built near the two existing ones. Settlements that will have an impact on traffic and water and sewage infrastructure.
In expressing its opinion on the Ca' Lina plan, Azienda gardesana servizi said that the connections to the aqueduct “could be limited in size” to ensure that the water resource is only for human consumption. For other needs, including irrigation and swimming pools, ‘alternative sources of supply’ such as wells and cisterns will have to be identified


Read the full article from L'Arena of 23 March https://www.larena.it/territorio-veronese/garda-baldo/castelnuovo-del-garda-lottizzazione-vista-lago-1.12626910