Latest news with #Zanella
7NEWS
09-08-2025
- 7NEWS
Fed-up Italian farmers set up mountain turnstiles to charge access to Instagram hot spots
If Carlo Zanella, president of the Alto Adige Alpine Club, had his way, travel influencers would be banned from the Dolomites. He blames them for the latest Italian social media trend which has lured hundreds of thousands of tourists to the mountain range in northern Italy, with many traipsing across private land to get that perfect shot. In response to the influx, frustrated local farmers have set up turnstiles where tourists must pay €5 (nearly $A9) to access several 'Instagrammable' spots, including the Seceda and Drei Zinnen (Three Peaks) mountain ranges. Photos showing lines of up to 4,000 people a day have been popping up on social media in recent weeks. But, rather than deter people from coming, the images have acted as a magnet. 'The media's been talking about the turnstiles, everyone's been talking about it,' says Zanella. 'And people go where everyone else goes. We're sheep.' Italian law mandates free access to natural parks, such as the Alps and Dolomites, but the landowners who set up the turnstiles say they have yet to receive any official pushback from authorities. Georg Rabanser, a former Italian national team snowboarder who owns land in a meadow on Seceda, told the Ladin-language magazine La Usc he and others started charging tourists to cross their land to make a point. 'So many people come through here every day, everyone goes through our properties and leaves trash,' he says. 'Ours was a cry for help. We expected a call from the provincial authorities. But nothing. We only read statements in the newspapers. Gossip; nothing concrete. We haven't even received warning letters. So, we're moving forward.' 'This isn't what the mountains should be' Zanella, who says he avoids his once beloved alpine hiking trails during summer, supports the landowners charging admission to cross their property. He thinks the government should pay for the upkeep of the entrance system, likening the overtourism to Venice where visitors have to pay a €10 entrance fee (around $A18) on busy weekends. 'I would increase the price from €5 to €100,' he tells CNN. 'And close the accounts of travel influencers.' Beyond the public nuisance of overcrowding, he fears the naivete of social media tourists puts them at risk. 'Once upon a time, those who came up to the mountains were prepared, dressed for the mountains, and came for hiking — especially the Germans, who had maps and knew where to go,' he says. 'The Italians, on the other hand, set off, go, and take a cable car. 'Now I've seen people go up to Seceda with sun umbrellas and flip-flops and get stuck because the cable car closed and they hadn't checked the lift schedules. 'This isn't what the mountains should be.' The local tourism body has petitioned authorities to close the turnstiles, insisting the issue is being overblown. The Santa Cristina Tourist Board, which oversees part of the area where the turnstiles have popped up, said it has hired four park rangers to ensure tourists stay on the trails, don't cross the meadows and don't fly drones. 'Things have improved significantly,' Santa Cristina Tourist Board president Lukas Demetz says. 'And even the litter problem isn't as serious as people say. It's significantly reduced.' Still, across the Aosta Valley, parking lots have popped up to stop people from driving up the mountainside, and hikers are required to take the paid shuttle bus to Monte Rosa. At the Pian del Re peat bog in Piedmont, only 150 cars are allowed to park in the closest parking area to discourage visitors. Some regions, including Lake Braies, now charge €40 a car to access the area to try to deter people from coming in to take pictures. Arno Kompatscher, the governor of South Tyrol province, which includes part of the Dolomites range, has called on the national government to set restrictions to protect the fragile alpine ecosystems and dissuade local residents from renting out their chalets to tourists. New laws to curb bad behaviour The mountain residents aren't the only Italians clamping down on badly behaved visitors. Across the country, new ordinances have been a hallmark of the 2025 summer. Wearing just a swimsuit or going bare-chested in some Italian towns will attract more than a few looks. Semi-nudity could also land you a €500 fine — in the name of decorum. The Tuscan island of Elba and the Ligurian city of Diano Marina have both introduced summer ordinances that prohibit shirtless and swimsuit-only strutting — for both men and women — anywhere but the beach. And if your attire is deemed vulgar or 'indecent' in the eyes of any beholder, authorities can levy smaller fines starting at €25 euros. In Livorno, walking barefoot is prohibited. On Sardinian beaches, you'll get in trouble for digging holes for umbrellas, smoking, or lying on the sand without a mat. At the ever popular La Pelosa beach area, only 1,500 bathers are allowed at a time to prohibit overcrowding. In San Felice Circeo, a party town south of Rome where having an aperitivo on the beach is a way of life, take-away alcohol is banned both in town and on the beach. Loud music can only be blared during certain hours across much of the country and, in the southern region of Puglia, boaters risk a fine if they play music within 500m of the coast.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Yahoo
Poudre School District will pay $16.2M in settlements to victims of Tyler Zanella
Poudre School District's Board of Education agreed May 13 to pay $16.2 million to settle multiple lawsuits filed against the district on behalf of students who were assaulted, abused and harassed by former paraprofessional school bus attendant Tyler Zanella. The school district's insurance policy will cover $10 million of the settlement payment, with the school board providing an additional $6.2 million from its contingency fund, according to a resolution approved by a 7-0 vote of the board during a regularly scheduled meeting. Zanella was facing 164 charges, including 34 felonies, for assault, child abuse and harassment against the students – all autistic and mostly nonverbal, according to court testimony – when he accepted a plea deal to avoid trial that was approved Jan. 29, 2024, by 8th Judicial District Judge Daniel McDonald. That agreement required Zanella to plead guilty to the most serious charge involving each of the identified victims, including seven counts of assault knowingly or recklessly causing injury to an at-risk individual, a Class 3 felony. Fort Collins police and the 8th Judicial District Attorney's office identified 11 victims in their investigation and initial filing of charges, though the settlement lists 10 victims. Zanella, now 38, was sentenced April 12, 2024, by McDonald to 12 ½ years in prison. Multiple lawsuits were brought against the district and district staff by families of the victims. The lawsuits claim that staff failed to properly investigate multiple complaints from parents and one staff member about Zanella, that staff failed to properly respond to parent complaints about Zanella's actions, that staff failed to report suspected abuse to law enforcement as required by Colorado law, and more. The U.S. District Court for Colorado in Denver consolidated three separate lawsuits into a single case Oct. 28, 2024. The settlement frees both the district and the current and former staff members included in the lawsuits from further legal culpability. Court records listed parents and guardians of the victims by name and one, Sabrina Herrick, has identified herself multiple times in public comments to the Board of Education and more recently, as a candidate for a seat on the school board in the November 2025 election. "The last two years have felt like a decade," Herrick told the Coloradoan after the settlement was approved. "I'm extremely happy that PSD leadership came to the table to not only help our children heal and thrive, but also try to stop this from happening again. That's all I've wanted this whole time, healing and change for the better." The Coloradoan does not name children who are victims of crime and is not naming the other parents or guardians for the privacy of the children. Settlement payments must be distributed to the "Minor Children," the agreement stipulates, with "no money being distributed to the parents other than in their capacities as parents and next friends to their Minor Children." Payments are being made to eight families, ranging from $750,000 to more than $4.6 million for one family with three child victims. The $16.2 million settlement was reached through 'confidential mediation' by lawyers representing victims and their families and the school district to avoid 'the uncertainties of litigation and for the purpose of compromise,' the resolution reads. It is a full and final release of all claims made by the victims and their families involving the employment of Zanella and his activities while working for the school district on buses transporting students with special needs to Shepardson and Bacon elementary schools. 'This resolution represents our collective commitment to addressing the harm caused and to supporting the ongoing recovery and well-being of these students and their families,' Board of Education President Kristen Draper said in a prepared statement that was read aloud following the vote to approve the settlement. That statement, which Draper said she was reading on behalf of the entire Board of Education, went on to point out additional commitments the district has made since Zanella's arrest May, 24 2023. PSD, Draper said, invested nearly $2 million and 'hundreds of hours of staff time to improve our processes, protocols and training. These include implementing robust safety measures enhancing employee training programs and revising policies and protocols to provide additional layers of accountability and oversight.' Draper went on to highlight what she said were key changes: Revised hiring practices that exceed industry and state standards. Installation of advanced bus camera systems across the entire fleet. Hiring a dedicated Transportation Manager for students with disabilities to oversee and support bus operations. Improved comprehensive staff training on trauma-informed care, behavior management, and mandatory reporting. Improved communication and collaboration between transportation, schools, and families. Draper's statement went on to refer to Zanella's actions as 'a painful chapter' in the school district's history that also served as 'a catalyst for important and necessary improvements.' 'We are mindful that our next chapter must include increased efforts centered on healing, repairing the harm done, and rebuilding trust,' Draper said. 'PSD remains steadfast in our dedication to fostering a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment for all students.' Reporter Kelly Lyell covers education, breaking news, some sports and other topics of interest for the Coloradoan. Contact him at kellylyell@ and This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: PSD will pay $16.2M to settle lawsuits by victims of Tyler Zanella
