We are pleased to welcome a new Italian member to the Eurhonet community: Aler Bergamo Lecco Sondrio (BLS). To find out more about the organisation and its goals, we spoke to General Manager Cav. Dr. Corrado Pietro Attilio Della Torre.

Welcome to Eurhonet! Can you tell us a bit about your organisation?

“Aler[i] Bergamo Lecco Sondrio is located in the central alpine area of Lombardy and includes three provinces. We have approximately 13,000 homes, 110 employees, and our governance is represented by the President, who is a political figure, and the General Manager, who has full responsibility for managing the company.”

What is your background and how did you end up working in public housing?

“For 10 years, I was the Vice President of the Board of Aler Brescia (2003-2013). Then, I was the CEO of GESI – a company of global service of Aler Brescia. In April 2019, I started my job as General Manager of Aler Brescia-Cremona-Mantova and then, in October 2023, I became General Manager of Aler Bergamo-Lecco-Sondrio.”

What does public housing mean to you?

“In Italy, public housing serves to provide suitable housing solutions for those who are less well-off by assigning good-quality homes through public competition in a dignified urban living context.

The company’s mission is to satisfy the demand for housing through the management, enhancement and expansion of the public residential building heritage; the optimisation of available public and private financial resources; and the recovery of abandoned and degraded areas.

The Company also aims to satisfy the primary need for housing for all those who have difficulty accessing the free market. For this reason, the values ​​in which we believe and in the respect of which we operate are:

• a person-centred approach ;
• availability, collaboration, and transparency;
• caring for the local area;
• respect for the environment and communities.”

What are the best and most challenging aspects of your role?

“The most significant challenge is undoubtedly the high demand for public housing compared to the available supply. Despite our regions being among the wealthiest in Italy, many people lack the resources necessary to secure housing on the open market. Addressing this housing need is certainly stimulating and challenging, achieving positive and sustainable business results from an economic and financial perspective.”

What motivates you in your role?

“I’m motivated by teamwork with skilled and efficient colleagues, who bring great professional satisfaction to the company and to myself. Being a company within the Lombardy Region System, the most important and advanced region in Italy, allows us to operate optimally, providing the solutions society demands.”

What are the key priorities of your organisation right now?

“The key priorities are to provide modern homes that combine energy savings and quality of life with innovative designs.”

What are the main challenges in the public housing sector in your region?

“A key challenge is to improve connections and synergies between regional housing policy and other policies related to sustainable development.

In addition, another challenge is to meet the housing demand of specific social groups such as law enforcement, healthcare personnel, and school staff by making public housing accessible at lower rents than market rates.”

What made you want to join Eurhonet?

“I’ve known Eurhonet since its founding in 2006, having participated in its initial work as Vice President of the Board of Aler Brescia. I subsequently joined Eurhonet as General Manager of Aler Brescia-Cremona-Mantova. When I took on the role of General Manager of Aler Bergamo-Lecco-Sondrio, I promised myself I’d also bring this company into Eurhonet.”

What are you hoping to gain from the network?

“I hope to receive information and exchange experiences that will help the company I manage grow in a European context that focuses on quality living.”

What would you like other Eurhonet members to know about your organisation?

“We are a high-performing company with many best practices to share. I am particularly proud of our project to make public housing available to women who are victims of violence in the provinces of Bergamo and Lecco.

The aim is to support women who are survivors of domestic violence and their minor children on the path to independent living. The housing units selected by Aler (eight located in the province of Bergamo and three in the province of Lecco) will be available for a minimum of five years. Thanks to the regional contribution, the women hosted will receive full payment of their rent and reversible expenses for the entire period.

In addition, we are constructing highly energy-efficient housing using natural materials, such as the recent 30 housing units built in Lecco.”

[i] The Lombard Residential Building Company (A.L.E.R.) is a public economic entity with legal personality, entrepreneurial, organisational, patrimonial and accounting autonomy, dependent on the Lombardy Region in Northern Italy.

A.L.E.R. builds and manages homes for the less well-off social categories, respecting the economic balance of the company. Precisely because of their nature, ALERs have new roles and new tasks in the field of Public Residential Building and in the real estate context, in which they can operate directly with their own funds, or through the establishment of joint stock companies with public and private capital.