Augusta, Sicily: tax holidays to repopulate the historic centre

Augusta approved a regeneration programme for its depopulating historic centre: reduced or waived building contributions, up to five years of property-tax relief, and support for heavy refurbishment and demolition-and-faithful-reconstruction — explicitly to bring residents back, not just restore façades.

A small-town, incentive-led answer to hollowed-out centres — no grand masterplan, just cutting taxes and fees on people willing to live there — applicable to struggling UK market towns and coastal high streets.