Emilia-Romagna tender: sports facilities

The Emilia Romagna region has allocated 24 million euros from the Development and Cohesion Fund for the redevelopment of regional sports centres.

Eligible subjects and contributions

Meloni and Bonaccini agreement for development and cohesion

The tender is aimed at Local authorities of Emilia-Romagna (the Municipalities, the Unions of Municipalities, the Provinces and the Metropolitan City of Bologna), for the implementation of interventions on publicly owned plants.

a) For Line Adedicated to interventions carried out directly by the beneficiary local authorities through tenders:
- a contribution equal to a maximum of 70% of the eligible expenses; increased to 85% for local authorities within the Internal Areas and for entirely mountainous Municipalities;
- a maximum grantable amount not exceeding €500,000.00 for each beneficiary.

b) For Line B aimed at interventions that involve private entities in the following forms: 1) Public Private Partnership (PPP) envisaged by Title IV of the Contracts Code (Legislative Decree 36/2023), of a contractual type, with the exception of the availability contract and finance leasing contract as defined by the Public Contracts Code. 2) Interventions to be carried out on public assets by local authorities, with the contribution of private capital, provided that the same, at the time of awarding, is greater than 10% of the total amount and for a value of no less than 500 thousand euros.
- a contribution not exceeding 1/3 (one third) of the total cost of the work;
- the contribution cannot exceed the capital amount borne by the Local Authority;
- a maximum grantable amount of €1,500,000 for each beneficiary.

The grant granted can be cumulated with other public grants granted for the same eligible expenses, up to a maximum of 100% of the expenditure but cannot, however, be cumulated with other public grants granted by the Emilia-Romagna Region pursuant to previous tenders for sports facilities.

Fundable projects

Interventions relating to publicly owned sports facilities, including those located within schools, attributable to the following areas of intervention are eligible for funding under this notice:

  1. the construction of new sports facilities or the expansion of existing facilities, in order to increase the offer of spaces available to users;
  2. the redevelopment of existing structures, such as functional recovery, renovation, extraordinary maintenance, improvement and seismic adaptation, energy efficiency, making the systems safe, in order to qualify and increase the level of service offered and make the structures more efficient;
  3. the creation of green areas and equipped outdoor spaces, intended for sports practice, in order to accompany sports practice outdoors and independently.

The interventions can freely concern one or more of the areas of intervention listed above.

The interventions must concern a single sports facility (intended as a set of one or more sports activity spaces of the same or different type, which have the related spaces and ancillary services in common) or a single sports complex (a set of several contiguous sports facilities having common constituent elements, ancillary spaces and/or services).

The interventions may also concern, in the case of a contract, a single functional lot of a more complex intervention on a sports facility or complex, provided that this ensures functionality, usability and feasibility regardless of the implementation of the rest of the complex of interventions.

The interventions must include, under penalty of inadmissibility, a minimum eligible investment of no less than €300,000.00.

How to participate

The applications must be completed, validated and sent to the Emilia-Romagna Region exclusively electronically, via a specific IT platform available at the web address fsc.regione.emilia-romagna.it by completing the forms available there.

Applications for contributions must be digitally signed by the Legal Representative of the Organization or by a person delegated by him.

Applications can be submitted starting from 10.00 am on 30 September 2024 and until 5.00 pm on 28 November 2024.
Each local authority may submit only one application relating to a single sports facility or complex.

Criteria and minimum score equal to or greater than 50 points

Next, we list the maximum score for each criterion, accompanied by some suggestions to better align with the objectives according to our interpretation. Applications that achieve a score of less than 50 points will be considered ineligible, including any reward score.

A. Quality, innovation and coherence: max 15 points

The completeness and clarity of presentation of the project, its coherence with the aims of the tender and the presence of innovative technological solutions will be evaluated.

POWERgrass represents a cutting-edge system, the first true hybrid that combines natural and synthetic grass, designed to withstand intensive use and reduce both ordinary maintenance compared to a natural field and extraordinary maintenance compared to a synthetic field. This system offers performance and playing safety at the highest levels, resulting the most uniform in the preliminary FIFA tests conducted by the Universities of Michigan and Tennessee to create perfect pitches for the 2026 World Cup in North America. The POWERgrass hybrid system integrates innovative technologies in the production of a specifically designed synthetic turf and applies for the first time the principles of regenerative agriculture to the cultivation of natural grass.

B. Strategic nature of the plant with respect to needs: max 15 points

The index of provision of facilities of the same type present in the reference territorial basin will be evaluated with respect to the resident population, favoring the less well-endowed territories.

POWERgrass is a professional natural grass playing field, in accordance with the most recent FIFA classification. The surface is entirely covered with natural grass, while synthetic fibers make up less than 5% of the total. The versatility of the field is enhanced by the absence of fixed lines, allowing the tracing of various types of games and making it multidisciplinary. This feature supports the legislator's objective of encouraging the practice of different sports disciplines, benefiting a greater number of citizens. While an 11-a-side natural grass football pitch can accommodate a limited number of hours of play, a POWERgrass hybrid grass pitch can be used for up to 30 hours per week. This allows you to vary the lines of play every weekend and even during the week. As the grass grows, the previous lines disappear and, with efficient marking tools, the field can be prepared in less than an hour. Below, we propose a series of sports disciplines that we believe are useful for involving even the most vulnerable segments of the population:
1. 11-a-side, 7-a-side, 8-a-side Football is the most popular sport in the world.
2. Rugby which in the "tag" version is ideal for schools because it is without physical contact.
3.
is ideal for schools because it is without physical contact.American Football which in the "flag" version
4. Lacrosse a North American sport enjoyable for women.
5. Cross-Country Running which involves all citizens and barefoot training.
6. Hunting archery ideal for disabled people.
7. Tug of War ideal for little ones without particular skills.
8. Baseball - Softball a very popular sport in the United States not yet sufficiently developed.
9. Bocce on the grass "lawn bowl" which is ideal for the elderly.

C. Environmental and energy sustainability: max 25 points

The adoption of technological solutions aimed at improving environmental sustainability will be evaluated, including the use of products and materials with environmental certifications or the obtaining of environmental certifications for the building, to reduce the environmental footprint, reduce climate-altering emissions also through the use of renewable energy and limit energy and material consumption, such as that of water resources.
In the case of energy requalification interventions on existing buildings, the reduction in energy consumption and the reduction in emissions of climate-changing gases will be assessed through the performance data of the APE simulations (pre- and post-intervention) attached to the application. In the case of newly constructed buildings, the post-intervention energy performance indicated in the APE simulation will be taken into account.
For the purposes of environmental sustainability, the following data will also be assessed, if present: expected savings on water resources, for example for use in swimming pools, toilets, irrigation of equipped and unequipped green areas; coverage of final energy consumption satisfied by means of systems installed as part of the proposed intervention.

From the point of view of environmental and energy sustainability, POWERgrass represents an excellent solution compared to any other option available. The POWERgrass hybrid turf extends the useful life of the system compared to completely synthetic systems and doubles the hours of use of the field during the season compared to conventional hybrid systems, even quadrupling this value compared to natural grass fields. Furthermore, at the end of the season, the POWERgrass system is easily renewable, significantly reducing the extraordinary maintenance costs necessary to frequently replace sods of grass in natural fields or to replace entire damaged conventional hybrid systems. This translates into significant savings in resources, including materials, transportation, irrigation water, as well as machinery rentals and labor when restoring the pitch for the following season. The environmental impact and energy consumption for the reconstruction of damaged natural fields and synthetic ones with a life of 10 years are reduced by over 50%, thanks to the use of materials that can be reused, even after 20 years, in the redevelopment of the new field or for other similar works without further transformations. The backing of the hybrid carpet reduces water evaporation and the drainage and irrigation system is designed to collect rainwater, thus reducing water needs and electricity consumption, also thanks to constant remote monitoring.

Q. Security and accessibility: max 25 points

The adaptation of the system to the regulations relating to safety and accessibility will be assessed, in particular for the reduction of seismic risk, fire safety, the presence of defibrillators, the accessibility of disabled people both as users and the public and the adaptation to CONI regulations, where required.

Much of this objective concerns the sports center facilities and access routes, which need to be examined on a case-by-case basis. In relation to game safety for athletes, the POWERgrass hybrid system offers a professional, soft and stable playing surface, with greater stud traction to support players during game actions and in the event of falls. It is no coincidence that goalkeepers prefer to train on the POWERgrass hybrid turf, as it remains soft even in winter, being less subject to the thermal stress of low temperatures. Unlike natural fields, which often cannot support the transit of wheelchairs, the POWERgrass system also allows access to people with disabilities, thanks to the greater consistency of the surface provided by the reinforcement of the artificial carpet. Furthermore, on the playing field it is possible to organize concerts and allow public access to the lawn, with light protection to facilitate subsequent cleaning.

E. Design level: max 10 points

The presentation, at the time of application, of an already approved executive project will be evaluated.

The POWERgrass engineering team provides executive-level design support for free. However, he recommends turning to expert designers in the sports facility sector to facilitate obtaining a favorable opinion from CONI, ensuring that the project is complete and compliant with current regulations.

F. Spending timetable: max 10 points

The speed of the spending timetable will be evaluated.

Installation of the POWERgrass hybrid field takes approximately 4-5 weeks, depending on the season, ease of access and the availability of inert materials such as crushed stone and river sand from nearby quarries. After sowing, it is necessary to wait a further 4 weeks in favorable weather conditions to ensure that the lawn is ready for use.

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