A court bailiff has arrived at the Antico Caffè Greco, a historic meeting place for intellectuals and artists in the heart of Rome, with the long-postponed eviction now scheduled for tomorrow.
The administrator of the famous café on Via Condotti, Carlo Pellegrini, issued a statement blaming the outcome on “an absent and inert Ministry of Culture in the face of property speculation.” He specifically pointed to the failure to use a law protecting historic commercial activities recognized as cultural assets, which has resulted in the café being ousted “to make way for yet another luxury brand.” “Every suspension of the eviction until now has been obtained solely thanks to the intervention of judges, never on the initiative of the Ministry,” stated the administrator, recalling that “in 1953, Minister Antonio Segni, with a pioneering decree, courageously blocked the speculation that threatened Caffè Greco.”
Pellegrini also noted that “the same logic has struck Palazzo Nardini and the historic cinemas Esperia, Paris, Metropolitan, Royal, and Roma. This is not simple inertia, but a conscious political choice that erases culture and memory in favor of speculative interests.”
Furthermore, the administrator stated the eviction is not linked to the financial crisis of the Israelite Hospital, the owner of the café’s building: “Their situation is real and serious, but the Antico Caffè Greco offered the same sum outlined in the Israelite Hospital’s economic recovery plan. Therefore, the eviction serves other interests.”