Governing a brand-territory: the Regional Territorial Plan of the Franciacorta area

The 'productive landscape' of Franciacorta (Lombardy region, Italy), represents a significant territorial promotion and landscaping experience, founded on the brand, and on the territorial image, of wine production. For over a decade, local institutions and territorial entities have undertook a path characterized by the sharing of spatial policies, widely supported by economic actors and authorities. Drawing from these initiatives, in September 2015, Lombardy Region has launched a process of Sub-Regional Territorial Planning (with the scientific support of the Universities of Bergamo and Brescia) that involves 22 municipalities: 18 included in the DOCG (Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin) Franciacorta Area and 4 neighboring municipalities. The Regional Territorial Plan of Franciacorta (PTRA) sees the participation of local institutions and socio-economic stakeholders and it represents an opportunity for multilevel planning and governance experimentation on a wide scale, as well as for critical and academic reflection. The core objective of the Franciacorta PTRA is the promotion of landscape as a resource in terms of: (i) territorial planning: land consumption and soil sealing related landscape measures, itineraries/greenways and leisure mobility infrastructures, public and rural real estate heritage renewal, road network and access; (ii) governance: inter-municipal planning and cooperation among local institutions, common urban and building regulations, opportunities for enhancement.