Abstract
Bolzano, a mid-seized town in the northernmost part of Italy, evolved as a commercial city on the transport routes between the north and the south in the twelfth century. Commerce is still alive there today, as is confirmed by numerous initiatives involving the city's authorities in order to support commercial activity, which alongside tourism is one of the pillars of the city's prosperity. And yet until a few years ago, and unlike many other cities of a similar size, Bolzano did not have any shopping centers, and for thos whol regularly went shopping in nearby regional capitals such as Trento and Innsbruck, the openng of a shopping mall was a long-held wish. This text is a report about the cultural and legal issues related to the construction of a shopping mall in the city center of Bolzano that was accompanied by an intense debate involving the civil society and the representatives of the local economies as well as the political decision-makers.