The following press release announcing the legal recourse at the TAR Veneto against the decision 433/2018 of the City of Venice, has been sent to the local Venetian press on Monday, September 3rd, 2018:
Venice Kayak Srl, one of the very few zero-impact companies in Venice, which takes pride in the professionalism of its guides and the safety of the clients, has decided to take legal recourse in front of the TAR (the regional administrative tribunal) of the Veneto, against the decision with which the City of Venice – with a measure with no prior warning which entered into force on August 1st, one single day after its publication – has banned, for stated reasons of safety of navigation, kayaks and canoes from transiting the main waterways of the city centre.
However – underlines the owner René Seindal – Venice Kayak has never been involved in any accident, nor has it ever received any kind of fine, during its activity.
Mr. Seindal continues adding that the accidents that have happened on the waterways of the City of Venice, have all involved other types of vessels and are for the most part provoked by the way the boats have been conducted, certainly not by the type of boat.
From this derives the necessary formal reaction of the company which, through its lawyers Giovanni Falcomer and Francesco Mazzoleni, has presented a legal recourse at the Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale against the decision.
We all agree that it is right to guarantee the safety and preserve the beauty of the historical centre of Venice, says Venice Kayak, but this is certainly not achieved by banning from one day to the other, the smallest boats – in number and dimension – from transiting in good order along most of the waterways of the centre.
Very different measures were expected, directed at confronting the danger of accidents.
Further – and not a secondary thing – the company offers a niche service to its clients, giving work to several persons.
The consequence is – closes the owner of the company – that the possibilities of finding itineraries for the clients are reduced to almost nothing, and it will force Venice Kayak to reduce its activity drastically, laying off highly qualified employees, while accidents will continue to happen between other types of boats, non of which are afflicted in any way in this decision of the city administration.
There will be a court hearing soon, where the request for the urgent suspension of the decision of late July will be discussed.