The staircase between Viale Santucci and Vico Marucci: what the documents say

What was reported

On 12 January 2026 councillor Alessandro Graziosi (Prospettiva Atri group) filed an access-to-records request (reg. no. 802) about the concrete pedestrian ramp built on the slope between Viale Santucci (lower level) and Vico Marucci (upper level). On 2 November 2026 he filed a second request, addressed to the Mayor and the Head of the Public Works Area, with photographs taken that day.

According to the councillor, the photographs show surface erosion, soil and plant material piled at the foot of the slope, and muddy water on the road below. In the photograph we have seen, soil and plant debris are visible on the lower part of the staircase, along with the metal handrail and muddy water on the road. We have not verified the place and date of the shot ourselves, and a picture alone does not say what the cause is.

The councillor also reports that he has not received several of the documents requested (in its reply the Municipality sent two and deferred the others to the end of the works) and that in May 2026 a handrail, a lateral water-collection channel and a geotextile were installed on the slope: these are his own direct observations, for which we have no act.

The councillor told us he has already made public the documentation we hold (the access request and the Municipality's reply) in a post of his dated 19 May; we do not have the reference to that post and relied on the documents he sent us.

The councillor asks for an inspection by experts in geology, geotechnics and structures, precautionary measures in the meantime, and a full answer to the January request. He writes expressly that the request «does not intend to make preliminary assessments on the existence of instability», but to call for a documented check. The same caution applies to this dossier.

What the documents say about the contract

Determination no. 1571, registered on 29 December 2025 (proposal of 18 December) and published on the Albo on 30 December 2025, awards to L.P.G. s.p.a. the «construction of a ramp connecting the new car park to the historic centre», as primary urbanisation works (CIG B9A8C67588).

The act cites article 120(1)(b) of the Public Contracts Code (Legislative Decree 36/2023), on supplementary works: the firm is the same one carrying out the main works, «Rearrangement of parking areas and conversion into intermodal exchange zones» (CUP B39J22004040002), contracted for 90,970.96 euro plus VAT. The ramp's amount is about 19% of that contract (our calculation).

The determination's subject speaks of the link between the new car park and the historic centre; it does not name Viale Santucci or Vico Marucci. The link between the determination and the staircase is stated by the Municipality itself in its reply of 4 February 2026, which attaches the determination as the act awarding the works on the slope.

What the bill of quantities provides

The attached estimated bill of quantities, dated 15 December 2025 and prepared by the Municipality's Public Works Office, provides among other things for:

• clearing of the slope (150 square metres) and excavation of 30 cubic metres;
• haulage and disposal of the spoil at a treatment plant;
• an iron structure («iron staircase», 1,800 kg) plus kerbing (82 kg), about 10,900 euro in total, plus about 1,600 euro of galvanising;
• a pour of 6 cubic metres of concrete (25 × 1.2 × 0.2 metres) with welded mesh;
• 30 square metres of concrete tile paving.

The bill of quantities has no items for a geotextile, for gutters or any other water-collection system, or for works to retain the slope. It is a preliminary document: what was done afterwards (according to the councillor, in May 2026, the handrail, the geotextile and a water-diverting system) may have been decided by acts we do not have.

What the Municipality replied

On 4 February 2026 (reg. no. 3338) the Public Works Area replied to the first request. In summary:

• the work is not a ramp for removing architectural barriers but a «pedestrian ramp with steps», designed to link the two streets; given the height difference and slope, a ramp under D.M. 236/1989 could not have been built;
• the work was «under way» and the area «fenced off and closed to traffic»;
• the assessments under article 120(7) of Legislative Decree 36/2023 were under way, to identify on site technical solutions and materials suitable to ensure the stability and safety of the path;
• the determination and the bill of quantities were sent; the remaining final technical documentation «may be produced and made available at the end of the works».

A simple explanation for the absence of technical documents is therefore the one the Municipality gave: the site was not finished. We do not know whether the reports were drawn up and simply not yet handed over.

What does not appear in the documents consulted

«Does not appear» means it is not in the documents we hold, not that it does not exist. The documents consulted do not show:

• a geological or geotechnical report, or a stability check of the slope;
• sections and profiles of the ground before and after excavation;
• opinions or checks on hydrogeological, seismic and landscape matters;
• the building permit;
• the appointment of the works supervisor for this job, the contract, the delivery record, progress statements, the completion or final-inspection certificate;
• payment of this expense. Payment determination no. 321 of 31/03/2026, which also refers to no. 232 of 13/03/2026, concerns the main car park contract: 90,516.11 euro plus 454.85 euro, i.e. 90,970.96 euro. The ramp does not appear in them.

Two discrepancies in the documents

• The reply of 4 February 2026 cites determination no. 1571 «of 19/12/2025»; the act is registered on 29/12/2025 (the proposal is of 18/12/2025).
• The reply calls the work a «pedestrian ramp with steps»; the bill of quantities provides for an «iron staircase» and paving. The descriptions are compatible, but the final design should make clear what was actually built.

What can be asked

The questions the documents leave open are specific, and partly those the councillor has already asked:

1. When did the works on the slope begin and end, and by what act were the May 2026 works awarded?
2. Was a geological or geotechnical report drawn up? If not, on what technical and legal assessments was it judged unnecessary, given the wall and buildings above?
3. What check was made on the applicability of the rules on seismic authorisation, hydrogeological constraint and landscape protection?
4. What was the final cost of the ramp, and where is its payment recorded?
5. Is a technical inspection planned, and were precautionary measures taken after the rains?

Right of reply

Replies from the Municipality and the professionals involved will be published in full on this page, with the date they arrived. If a figure reported here turns out to be wrong or out of date, the text will be corrected and the correction declared.

Sources

• Determination no. 1571 of 29/12/2025 (award to L.P.G. s.p.a., CIG B9A8C67588), Albo pretorio of the Municipality of Atri; OpenCivTech records register.
• Estimated bill of quantities of 15/12/2025, attached to the Municipality's reply.
• Reply of the Public Works Area of 4 February 2026, reg. no. 3338, to request reg. no. 802 of 12/01/2026.
• Access-to-records request by councillor Alessandro Graziosi, 12 January 2026.
• Request to check slope stability by councillor Alessandro Graziosi, 2 November 2026.
• Payment determination no. 321/2026, referring to no. 232/2026 (main car park contract, CUP B39J22004040002).