Used, seduced, and abandoned: the Salvatore Cottone gym in the Palme neighborhood risks oblivion.

Used, seduced, and abandoned. In the hope that it does not fall prey to its perhaps cruelest fate: oblivion. We are talking about the “Salvatore Cottone” gym located on via Tenente Alberti in the Rione Palme neighborhood of Trapani. Disgraced, vandalized, and set on fire over the years, it currently remains a silent witness to some of the most intense pages of the city's sports history. Inside, generations of Trapani residents have rejoiced and suffered for the deeds of their sports heroes. Its stands, filled with cheering and passion, have animated the sports afternoons of many Trapani fans when the Velo Trapani took to the court in women's A2 series basketball and, even earlier, when pallacanestro Trapani played in a national B series with an old-fashioned flavor.

In its recent history, it has also hosted some matches of the Fiba Under 22 European Championships in basketball, as recalled by the faded plaque affixed to the main entrance of the facility. Last February, city councilor Nicola Lamia (Brothers of Italy) had presented an inquiry. Starting from "considering that the aforementioned facility has been in a state of severe degradation for an immeasurable time, rendering it completely unusable and dangerous, to the point that calling it 'disastrous' would be euphemistic, the current condition of the facility is the result of a prolonged absence of ordinary and extraordinary maintenance, the total lack of a security service, repeated acts of vandalism, and the inexorable passage of time, factors that have effectively depleted a public asset, built with taxpayer resources, of its original function and social role, depriving the Rione Palme and the entire city of a fundamental space for sports aggregation".

Lamia also asked whether the statements made in August two years ago by then Sports Councilor Emanuele Barbara regarding the recovery and renovation of the “Salvatore Cottone” gym had subsequently found follow-up in formal administrative acts with the Municipal Consortium of Trapani, and whether feasibility studies, preliminary, definitive, or executive projects related to the recovery of the facility had been drafted and, if so, at what stage of the process they were. The response during one of the last City Council meetings from the new councilor Andrea Genco has not yielded a positive outcome for the moment, as the same councilor reports that there is currently no agreement with the Free Municipal Consortium of Trapani and funding for the renovation will need to be identified, which is currently not possible.