Roberto Dipiazza (born 1 February 1953) is an Italian entrepreneur and politician. A member of the centre-right party

Forza Italia Forza ItaliaThe name is not usually translated into English: ''forza'' is the second-person singular imperative of ''forzare'', in this case translating to "to compel" or "to press", and so means something like "Forward, Italy", "Come on, Ital ...

, he has been

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Muggia between 1996 and 2001 and mayor of Trieste between 2001 and 2011 and again since 2016.

Career

His working career started as a large-scale

retail manager A retail manager (or store manager) is the person ultimately responsible for the day-to-day operations (or management) of a retail store. All employees working in the store report to the retail/store manager. A store manager reports to a distri ...

before setting up his own business enterprise in Trieste's province. His political debut happened in December 1996 when he was elected Mayor of Muggia as the leader of a centre-right coalition. His administration claimed to have renovated the old town and to have revived tourism thanks mainly to the new ''Porto S. Rocco'', considered one of the most highly rated yacht clubs in the northern

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...

, built with international entrepreneurs’ support. He claimed also to have succeeded in improving cross border relations between

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

thanks to the setting up of new business relations between Italian and Slovene multi-utility (gas, water, electricity) companies. In 2000 he was named ''commendatore'' (an official title awarded for services given to the Republic of

) by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Carlo Azeglio Ciampi Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (; 9 December 1920 – 16 September 2016) was an Italian politician and banker who was the prime minister of Italy from 1993 to 1994 and the president of Italy from 1999 to 2006. Biography Education Ciampi was born ...

. In May 2001 he was elected Mayor of

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...

with the support of a centre right coalition for a first term. His political program focused on a new role for the city of

linked to the eastern expansion of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

, the trade development of the port, the reorganization of the so-called ''porto vecchio'', and the strengthening of the links between the city and its international institutes of advanced studies and applied research. During his first term (2001-2006) as Mayor of Trieste, the merger between ''Acegas'' (

) and ''Aps'' (

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

) created the biggest multi-utility listed in the stock exchange in the north east of Italy. In 2004 the Italian financial newspaper ''

Il Sole 24 Ore ''Il Sole 24 Ore'' () is an Italian national daily business newspaper owned by Confindustria, the Italian employers' federation. History and profile ''Il Sole 24 Ore'' was first published on 9 November 1965 as a merger between ''Il Sole'' ("the ...

'' rated

as the best city in Italy for urban quality of life and services. He also supported sports activities and became president of the second division basketball team '' Pallacanestro Trieste 2004''. In the same year (2004) he was named “''grande ufficiale''” (another official title awarded for services given to the Republic of Italy) by

(

in 1999-2006). In May 2006 he was elected Mayor of

for a second term with the support of a centre right coalition. His program for the new term supported the vision of a city becoming the “capital” of the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...

region: a city able to offer qualified services and founding its economical revival on trading and on increased port activities, Trieste's age-old tradition. His administration claimed to have started a “''renaissance''” of the city, fuelled by new initiatives in scientific research and by the policy of making

an exclusive centre for tourists, both from

and from central eastern European countries. The increase of holiday cruisers calling in

, a result actually achieved by the ''Autorità portuale'' (an apolitical port-related institution), and the newly reconversion of the old fish market building into a contemporary art gallery were seen by his supporters as important steps in this direction. The goal to reduce the ''ICI'' (a local tax on

Real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more genera ...

) was Dipiazza's priority which implied a strict intervention on public expenses without touching the running of the municipality's administrative structure and services, and it was a matter of debate in the city whether the services were really not touched. Dipiazza left office in 29 May 2011. As mayor of

he was also in charge as President of the city lyric theatre "Giuseppe Verdi". In April 2013 he was a candidate for regional councilor in Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional election for the list of

PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics * Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former political party in Italy *Pole of Freedom ...

, the party of

Silvio Berlusconi Silvio Berlusconi ( ; ; born 29 September 1936) is an Italian media tycoon and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy in four governments from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006 and 2008 to 2011. He was a member of the Chamber of Deputies f ...

and

Angelino Alfano Angelino Alfano (; born 31 October 1970) is an Italian former politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 12 December 2016 to 1 June 2018. Alfano was Minister of the Interior from 28 April 2013 to 12 December 2016, serving in the ...

: Dipiazza obtained a very high record of preferences in his constituency and he was elected as regional councilor. In May 2014 he was a candidate of NCD (

's political party) for the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the Legislature, legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven Institutions of the European Union, institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and in ...

, but he was not elected. In June 2016 he was the candidate of FI (

's political party) for the office of Mayor of

with the support of NCD,

Brothers of Italy Brothers of Italy ( it, Fratelli d'Italia, FdI) is a national-conservative and right-wing populist political party in Italy. It is led by Giorgia Meloni, the incumbent Prime Minister of Italy and the first woman to serve in the position. Accor ...

Northern League Northern League may refer to: Sport Baseball * Northern League (baseball, 1902–71), a name used by several minor leagues that operated in the upper midwestern U.S. and Manitoba from 1902 to 1971 * Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010), an indep ...

and other minor lists of the center right coalition: Dipiazza was elected against

Roberto Cosolini Roberto Cosolini (born 14 May 1956) is an Italian politician who served as Mayor of Trieste from 2011 to 2016. Biography Cosolini began his career in the 1980s as provincial secretary, and then regional secretary, of the National Confederation o ...

(member of PD), the incumbent mayor of

(2011-2016), for a new (the third) term.

References

External links

Trieste's Municipality Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dipiazza, Roberto 1953 births Living people People from Aiello del Friuli Forza Italia politicians Mayors of Trieste