Reggio Emilia, September 10, 2026 – Resisting for 80 years in the heart of Reggio, raising the shutter of a business every morning that ends up belonging to the very topography of the city, fitting in like a piece of a mosaic. This is also how a piece of collective memory is preserved.
Opened in 1946 under the portico of the Broletto, while the city was taking its first steps in post-war reconstruction, Casa del Miele has seen generations, habits, and streets change, remaining an unchanged point of reference.
The outburst of Riccardo Benetti amid growing obstacles and decay
Today, however, to celebrate this important milestone there are not only memories, but a harsh and bitter public outburst entrusted to social media by the owner, Riccardo Benetti. At the center of the complaint is a daily reality made of growing obstacles and an urban decay that, despite countless formal reports, certified emails, and institutional inspections accumulated over time, appears chronically unresolved.
The photo attached to the post vividly depicts the situation: the portico hosting the historic shop is marked by barriers and fences of a construction site which, although absolutely necessary, ends up suffocating the shop’s visibility, drastically complicating the operations of goods supply.
Bird droppings and trash bins near the window: a call for decorum
The list of critical issues denounced by Benetti is long and touches the raw nerves of public space management. Just a few centimeters from the portico ceiling, the installation of a cable for public video surveillance has become a receptacle for pigeons, turning the space in front of the window into a nightmare of dirt that requires constant cleaning. Added to this are the trash bins placed right in the area dedicated to the shop’s display. It is not just a matter of decorum, but of economic survival and safety.
Different hours to protect the safety of employees
The progressive loss of vitality in the area has pushed operators to change opening and closing hours to protect the safety of those who work.
Behind that shutter, the owner recalls, there are not only products that have delighted young and old for generations, but families, salaries, rents, bills and a history that risks being shelved and pushed aside by administrative routine. The alarm call does not seek privileges or special treatment, but the restoration of minimum conditions of coexistence between public services and commercial activities.
A clear and uncompromising question closes the appeal: does a city that boasts a shop open since 1946 really want it to continue to exist?
Because what makes the difference today is not commemorative plaques or institutional photos, but the concreteness of a space where one can continue to work.
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