Residents of Testaccio have submitted plans to the city for the transformation of the vacant area being left behind when the open air food market in Piazza Testaccio moves to nearby Via Galvani at the beginning of January.

Comprising local residents and shopkeepers, the citizen group Testaccio in Piazza has drawn up designs for a new-look square to be included in a competition being tendered by the city.

The association would like to see the site transformed into a park with hedges and a fountain. It is also keen that the square be protected somehow by night, to avoid anti-social behaviour, and it is vehemently opposed to the installation of underground parking. It described the