PROFILE
ALBERTO ZAMPERLA
The Italian entrepreneur is getting international attention for his plans to build a new cultural visitor attraction in the heart of Venice. He talks to Liz Terry
Liz Terry, editor, Attractions Management
Zamperla wants share his passion for Venice and its history through a new attraction, which is proposed for San Biagio Island
Venetians through the centuries have captivated and inspired him. When news broke about his audacious
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proposal to build an attraction in Venice, the world’s media pounced and magazine and newspaper headlines screamed “theme park plan for Venice”, with reports rather disparagingly calling Zamperla – head of third-generation Italian ride manufacturer Antonio Zamperla SpA – a ‘fairground designer’. Historians were up in arms
at the prospect of a theme park inappropriately located in this jewel of a city, but the reality of Zamperla’s plan
lberto Zamperla’s passion for Venice is infectious – the history, politics, philosophy and sheer energy of the
is different in intent from the media scaremongering and he puts forward a robust case when we sit down to talk. His dream is to create a cultural hub
to welcome visitors and celebrate the history and culture of Venice. “Lots of people don’t understand how the city came to be”, he says, “so we plan to tell the story of Venice and to celebrate and record its culture and traditions”. If permission is given, the attraction will be built on San Biagio Island in the Venetian Lagoon, just a 300m, eight- minute boat ride from the city’s rail and cruise ship connections. Previously used as the location for a rubbish incinerator, the land – which is owned by the state of Italy – has lain unused and badly contaminated for
Read Attractions Management online
attractionsmanagement.com/digital many years, to the point that Zamperla
estimates he would need to spend €8m (US$11m, £6.5m) to clean the site before development work on the attraction could begin.
THE WAY AHEAD His first challenge is to establish a need: with so much history on view, surely a visitor attraction would be an unnecessary and artificial intru- sion? But Zamperla argues that in spite of its splendours Venice fails to offer an experience which meets the needs of today’s tourists and that the city is sorely in need of a gateway attraction. “Where can you go in Venice to learn about its history?” he says. “The Italians love history – Venetians love history –
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