In the ongoing urban planning debate in Milan, lawyer Guido Alberto Inzaghi, writing in “Il Foglio”, draws attention to the persistent interpretive uncertainty surrounding building regulations.
Against a backdrop of divergent interpretations of the concept of building refurbishment and an increasingly intense debate involving public authorities, market operators and the judiciary, Inzaghi highlights a central issue: the persistent uncertainty in the interpretation of the current legal framework.
By examining two recent judgments of the Council of State — No. 8542/2025 and No. 4155/2026 — Inzaghi demonstrates that they adopt criteria that are not entirely consistent when distinguishing between building refurbihsment and new construction. This divergence confirms the growing complexity of the regulatory framework and, in certain respects, its difficulty in adapting to the needs of contemporary urban regeneration.
The article forms part of a broader reflection extending beyond Milan and affecting the Italian planning system as a whole. Where a fundamental concept such as building refurbishment is subject to differing interpretations even at the highest levels of administrative justice, the need for legislative intervention capable of ensuring greater legal certainty for developers, public authorities and citizens becomes increasingly apparent.
Click here to read the full article.