In a year marked by high-stakes real estate maneuvers and institutional shakeups, two Italian cities—Messina and Sassari—have found themselves at the heart of significant property developments that could reshape their urban and economic landscapes. As 2025 draws to a close, the actions of local governments in both regions are stirring debate, hope, and no small amount of scrutiny among citizens and stakeholders alike.
According to Gazzetta del Sud, Messina’s mayor, Federico Basile, has been spearheading a series of economic investments and forging institutional agreements with both local and national entities. Over the past year, Basile, wearing both his tricolor mayoral sash and his blue Metropolitan City regalia, has either finalized or is on the verge of closing several deals. These operations are set to bring a range of properties and spaces—previously outside the municipality’s purview—under the control or management of Messina’s public administration.
This expansion of public stewardship is a notable shift for Messina. While the long-term results remain to be seen, the city is betting on the benefits of increased municipal control over strategic assets. Not all the announced deals have yet materialized into official acts, as Gazzetta del Sud points out, but the ambition is clear: to strengthen Messina’s hand in shaping its future by reclaiming or managing key real estate.
Meanwhile, in Sardinia’s north, the Metropolitan City of Sassari has taken a dramatically different approach to its own property conundrum. On December 27, 2025, authorities officially put the once-celebrated Casteldoria thermal complex up for auction, setting a base price of 6,783,000 euros. This move comes after years of closure, legal wrangling, and failed attempts at revitalization, as reported by La Nuova Sardegna.
The Casteldoria complex, nestled along the Coghinas river and surrounded by about 30,000 square meters of Mediterranean scrub, encompasses two main facilities: the sprawling spa of Santa Maria Coghinas and the thermal pools in Viddalba. The main spa building, which covers more than 4,600 square meters across five levels, once housed therapy departments, balneotherapy and fangotherapy areas, respiratory treatment rooms, hospitality suites, a restaurant, a bar, and various service spaces. Today, it stands silent—closed, its equipment idle, and its rooms in dire need of both structural and functional restoration.
The Viddalba pools, though in somewhat better shape, are also shuttered. This facility features a semi-Olympic 25-meter indoor pool, a whirlpool, changing rooms, technical spaces, and a bar with an outdoor terrace. Yet, even here, the prolonged closure has taken its toll, making significant renovation essential before any reopening can be contemplated.
What led to this point? The saga of Casteldoria is a familiar one in the world of public assets: a long-standing legal dispute with a concessionaire, which began before 2020, ultimately left the property in limbo. The site, once a magnet for patients and tourists from across Sardinia and the Italian mainland, fell into neglect as the legal battle dragged on. By June 2025, when the idea of a sale was still just a rumor, then-commissioner Gavino Arru toured the premises with the mayors of Santa Maria Coghinas and Viddalba. The inspection, as recounted by La Nuova Sardegna, revealed a facility “completely at a standstill, monitored but lacking any operational function.” The sense of loss was palpable—a regional gem reduced to abandonment.
The decision to sell marks a sharp break from earlier notions of public or mixed management, which had dominated discussions after the property’s return to public hands. Now, the Metropolitan City of Sassari is betting on the private sector’s ability to unlock the site’s potential. The auction process is designed to be rigorous: would-be buyers must conduct an on-site inspection before submitting secret bids above the technical valuation. The city hopes this requirement will weed out speculative or ill-prepared investors and ensure that any new owner fully grasps the scale of the financial and managerial commitment required.
For the communities of Anglona and the lower Coghinas valley, the stakes couldn’t be higher. The Casteldoria complex is more than just a real estate transaction—it’s a test of whether a historic asset, now fallen silent, can be revived to once again serve as a driver of health tourism and regional pride. As La Nuova Sardegna puts it, this is “the last chance to bring back to life a historic heritage now reduced to silence.”
The contrasting paths of Messina and Sassari raise intriguing questions about the role of public entities in managing, expanding, or divesting their property portfolios. In Messina, the trend is toward consolidation and expansion of public control, with the municipality actively seeking to acquire or manage assets that might serve the community’s interests. The hope is that this “immobiliarista” (real estate-driven) pivot will yield tangible benefits—though, as Gazzetta del Sud cautions, some announced deals have yet to move beyond the talking stage.
Sassari’s approach, on the other hand, is one of retrenchment and market testing. After years of frustration and failed public interventions, the city has opted to put its faith in private investment. The sale of the Casteldoria complex, with its spa, pools, and scenic land, is seen as a make-or-break moment—not just for the property itself, but for the region’s broader hopes of economic and touristic renewal.
What unites both stories is the sense of urgency and the weight of history. In Messina, the expansion of municipal control is framed as a proactive step toward shaping the city’s destiny, even as some residents wonder whether the results will live up to the promises. In Sassari, the auction of Casteldoria is a last-ditch effort to salvage a once-glorious site from the ravages of time and neglect, with the future now in the hands of whoever is willing and able to take on the challenge.
As 2026 approaches, both cities stand at pivotal crossroads. Their choices—whether to expand, manage, or relinquish control—will resonate far beyond the balance sheets, touching the lives and aspirations of communities eager for renewal. The coming months will reveal whether these bold moves will pay off, or whether they will join the long list of Italian real estate dreams deferred.
