Although the population on both sides of the Strait – which reaches 250,000 in Messina alone – constitutes Italy’s fifth largest metropolitan area, where geographical and cultural divisions have made cooperation between the Calabrian and Sicilian shores especially difficult. The aim was to devise a new floating island to spearhead joint development in a number of areas, including tourism. Located in the middle of the Strait as a high-speed hub (for passengers and goods) serving both shores, the floating park will be a symbol of unity, a point of attraction of natural and architectural interest, as well as a source of electricity, generated by underwater turbines.
