Milan said it would ban ice cream on the streets after midnight. After a fierce backlash, it backed down.
Milan wanted to ban the late-night sale of food and drink in its noisiest districts, but residents pushed back over the loss of a cherished tradition.
Gary Yeowell/Getty
- Milan has reversed a proposal to ban late-night sales of ice cream after a fierce public backlash.
- The ban initially covered the sale of all food and drinks in the city's nightlife areas in summer and fall.
- Late-night ice cream is a traditional treat for many Milanese.
The Italian city of Milan has U-turned on a controversial proposal to ban the sale of ice cream after midnight, according to multiple reports.
A local council plan to stop the late-night sale of food and drink in multiple districts was quashed after a massive backlash from residents.
Local officials mulled the proposal last year in response to residents' complaints about noisy nightlife, particularly in the thriving Porta Venezia area, Euronews reported.
Last month, the council proposed banning the sale of all takeaway food, including pizza, drinks, and ice creams, in 12 districts of the city between May and November, per Sky News.
The council did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
The goal was to "seek a balance between socializing and entertainment, and the peace and tranquillity of residents," Sky News reported Marco Granelli, the deputy mayor, as saying.
But the proposal ran roughshod over a cherished Italian tradition: gathering for a late-night ice cream.
The practice is one shared by locals and tourists alike — and residents were in uproar over the prospect of losing it, The Guardian reported.
"What does the average Italian family do in the summer? They go for a stroll after dinner and get an ice cream," Marco Barbieri, a representative of the city's retailers' association, told the paper.
The episode highlights some of the challenges facing Italy's most-visited cities when it comes to juggling local life, tourism, and business.
In Venice, officials have begun charging tourists to visit the historic city during peak periods. Locals have complained about the measure.
It's not the first time Milan has tried to bring an ice cream ban into law.
In 2013, city officials tried and failed to ban late-night ice cream, local paper Corriere della Sera reported at the time. The protests that ensued became known as the "Occupy Gelato" movement, according to The Guardian.
Granelli, the deputy mayor, has now hurried to clarify that the late-night ban will only apply to drinks — particularly alcohol — and not food.
"We can say right now that ice cream is not the item we are interested in and will be excluded from the bans," he said, per Sky News.
One city councilor, Alessia Cappello, also complained about the newspaper headlines around the world that came after the proposal, according to the outlet.