The Municipality of Sassari has awarded the contract to equip seven cooking stations at the civic market in Piazza Colonnello Serra. The project, costing €30,000, will provide facilities for preparing and serving hot food, including fume extraction systems. They are expected to open in the first weeks of 2027, while work continues on plans to restore the historic section of the building.
The stations will occupy stalls that are currently unused and separated from the rest of the market by panels installed in early 2025 for hygiene and safety reasons. The new work will see those partitions removed, allowing the spaces to be used for food service. The contract was awarded by the Public Works Department following a tender issued by the Productive Activities Department for the allocation of the stalls. The operators have already been selected, so no further administrative steps are required before operations begin.
According to Public Works Councillor Salvatore Sanna, the aim is to complete the preparatory work within a few months. The kitchens are therefore expected to open in early 2027, although this is an estimate dependent on the completion of the work. The businesses will have to comply with the conditions set out in the municipal tender: they must mainly use products and ingredients available from the market stalls, linking the new food offering to the existing retail businesses.
The stations will remain on the lower floor even when the historic section reopens. The administration says this is part of a trial to diversify services and make the market more attractive, while bringing traditional activities together with food service. The municipal programme “Towards a single market,” presented on 28 September, aims precisely to integrate the functions of the current facility with those of the future hub.
Restoring the historic section
The project designates the upper section around the Liberty-style canopy as a Food District: a space intended for food-related activities and local produce, as well as cultural and social events. Market operators, meanwhile, will continue to work in the newer section. The square above is also set to be refurbished. The municipal plan for 2026–2028 allocates €250,000 to training, promotion and management activities for the enhancement programme.
Work on the historic building, which has been closed since 2012, has not yet resumed. Sanna said that the design team will soon submit the final version and that the administration aims to restart work by early 2027, with the goal of returning the market to the city in the first months of 2028. The revised plan also takes into account guidance from the Superintendency and redefines the use of the spaces from a technical, economic and cultural perspective. The new food hub project is thus part of the broader revival of the civic market.