Italians prefer to live in neighborhoods with more local businesses because they strengthen communities (64% of respondents), make people feel safer (57%), and increase home values (up to 26% more). The closure of shops concerns and saddens citizens, particularly in the North and in medium-sized cities, who clearly perceive which types of goods are most at risk: this, in summary, is what emerges from a survey conducted by Confcommercio in collaboration with SWG as part of the Cities project, which deals with combating commercial desertification in Italian cities and developing the social value of proximity economies. For Italian citizens, the presence of commercial establishments in the area where they live is the most satisfying and the only one that receives a positive evaluation in all areas of the country and in all types of municipalities, both small and large, even more so than the presence of green spaces and public services such as schools, hospitals, and sports centers. The presence of shops also guides citizens' settlement preferences: for 88%, it is decisive in the choice of the neighbourhood in which to live, while only one in ten people prefers to live in an entirely residential area, without proximity services.
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