Italy to Press Bid for Expo 2000 in Venice Despite Global Protests

Italy said Tuesday it will not withdraw its controversial bid for Venice to host Expo 2000, but he added that much of the world’s fair will be held outside the historic center.

Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti told Parliament that, if the Paris-based International Exhibition Bureau chose Venice, the fair would be centered on the mainland cities of Marghera and Mestre and other parts of the Veneto region.

The proposal to host the fair in Venice sparked an uproar from lovers of the city around the world. The city council is also against it.

Opponents argued that Venice is a unique part of Europe’s cultural heritage and would be irreversibly damaged by new constructions for the fair and a massive influx of tourists.

The European Community’s environment commissioner, Carlo Ripa de Meana, said that Italy, due to assume the rotating presidency of the 12-nation community July 1 for six months, will face major problems in this role if the bid is not withdrawn.

Critics of the plan, which includes an ultra-modern rail system and an artificial lagoon, estimate that Venice will face at least 175,000 additional visitors a day beyond the usual peak of 60,000.

Andreotti said that hosting the fair gives his government the opportunity to inject new life into the city’s economy and to launch long-term projects to protect its artistic heritage.

The Paris exposition bureau is scheduled to make a decision among Venice, Toronto and Hanover, West Germany, on June 14.