Pescatore: Calm and Industrious

The area where the Pescatore Neighborhood now stands was, during the Royal Age, simply the collection of lands north of the Villa Neighborhood; throughout the history of the Kingdom of Grontolom and Cismarina, it was never the object of expansionist ambitions, despite various incursions into the dense forest and across the lands which, at the time, gave no indication whatsoever of future colonization or systematic urbanization.

Things changed with the advent of the Republic. Due to the aforementioned proximity of the territory to the Villa Neighborhood (one of the most important in the Republic and, at the time, among the most central) it gradually became clear that the attention of the democratic Governors would inevitably be drawn toward such a vast and almost unexplored territory, entirely lacking urbanization, especially in light of the steady growth of the City of Cismarina and the scarcity of territories easily integrated into the urban fabric.

Governor Gaetano Poppi, on Day 3490 during the Sixth Legislature, planned for the first time a territorial expansion toward the north, exploring the harsh terrain in order to understand the natural limit at which expansion should stop. Thanks to these explorations, it was also discovered that the territory of Cismarina stood upon an enormous peninsula surrounded by the sea to the north, east, and south. For this reason, it was considered sensible that the immense territory north of the City should, in one way or another, become part of the City itself.

Governor Todd Tergi, one of the great figures in the history of the Republic, during the Seventh Legislature (corresponding with his first experience governing the City of Cismarina) approved on Day 3514 the annexation of the lands north of Villa up to the sea. Within the enormous area initially defined as the Northern Territory, the great northern roadway was constructed only three days after the annexation, beginning from Villa Square and stretching to the coast that marked the new boundary of the City.

The great road was named Pescatore’s Road, though the reason has been lost to time: most likely it was believed that, since the territory was tied to the surrounding sea and characterized by numerous coves, it must once have been a fishing area for populations about whom absolutely nothing is known; other legends speak instead of a solitary fisherman (pescatore, in Italian) found exactly where the road now ends, who disappeared as soon as the construction works for the roadway reached him.

Governor Todd Tergi decided to build a small church devoted to the worship of Frank X at the end of the new road, naming it the Pescatore’s Chapel. Because of the isolation in which it stood for hundreds of days, it quickly became a pilgrimage destination and place of worship for the citizenry.

It was also decided that the section of newly annexed territory west of the river could not be urbanized: consequently, the first and only Natural Reserve of the City of Cismarina was established (Seventh Legislature, 3538), and it still exists today. For dozens upon dozens of Legislatures, the Natural Reserve constituted an independent Neighborhood with strict rules against urbanization and the exploitation of its resources, though it has recently been reintegrated into the Pescatore Neighborhood; despite losing its status as an independent Neighborhood, it maintains its protected status.

Again under the influence of Todd Tergi, a new form of public architecture inspired by Art Deco was experimented with in the Pescatore Neighborhood. This new style was first adapted for the construction of the first Palace of Development (Palazzo dello Sviluppo, Eighth Legislature, 3560–3575), the first in a series never completed, whose purpose was the urban use and development of isolated areas within the territory of the City. The example of the Palace of Development in the Pescatore Neighborhood proved a success, thanks to the beauty of the building, its functionality, and the auxiliary structures constructed alongside it, such as the Palace of the Stock Exchange (Palazzo della Borsa, Eighth Legislature, 3589) and the Square of the Palace of Development (Piazza del Palazzo dello Sviluppo). This successful example, however, was never replicated elsewhere in the City of Cismarina.

Following this great success, Governor Todd Tergi concentrated his efforts in many other areas of the City, but he nevertheless chose the Pescatore Neighborhood for the construction of the Ara Tergis, his personal commemorative Building celebrating one hundred days of governing the City.

He was also the first Governor to consider the use of the vast unused areas within the Neighborhood for the construction of productive and industrial buildings. Indeed, it was thanks to Todd Tergi that work began on the Fabbrica Cismarina Uova Autoctone, the Cismarina Native Egg Factory (started during the Eleventh Legislature in 3707 and completed by Brianno Adami during the Twelfth Legislature in 3780), and that the industrial potential of the eastern section of the Pescatore Neighborhood was first understood.

Governor Fiorenzo Giganti, during the Twelfth Legislature on Day 3752, theorized the possibility of a surface railway connection between the Pescatore Neighborhood and the Swamp of Grontolom (Palude di Grontolom), given the relative proximity between the two stretches of land, both of which at the time belonged to the City of Cismarina. Its construction, however, was postponed until the Twenty-Fifth Legislature, with the bridge dedicated to Todd Tergi built by Governor Todd Andres Tergi, his nephew: planning began on Day 4418, while construction was completed in 4430.

Work then followed to transform the Pescatore Neighborhood into the first in the City to possess an industrial zone. Indeed, after the initial construction of the Egg Factory, other productive facilities were built in the same area: it was there that an Iron Factory was constructed by Lucio Vinnisoci in 5027 during the Thirty-Fifth Legislature, followed only three days later by a Beef and Leather Factory; a Sugar Cane Factory with rail-based harvesting was built by Giuseppe Carsoni in 5075 during the Thirty-Sixth Legislature, and a second Iron Factory was built twenty days later to replace the original non-functioning one, itself later renovated once again by Governor Nuccio Altanti in 6172 during the Fifty-Eighth Legislature.

The Neighborhood was also the site of the first transfer of territorial sovereignty between the City and the Church of Frank X. During the construction of the important Monastery of the Pescatore’s Chapel (begun by Silvio Parri in 5041 during the Thirty-Fifth Legislature), the Governor decided to donate the lands upon which the monastic buildings were being constructed to the religious institution, effectively excluding City authority from the area for the first time. This was the first — though not the last — occasion in which the City reduced its own territorial dimensions since its foundation: more recently, during the Federal Era, the City of Cismarina and the City of Vestia, through the intercession of Parliament, reached an agreement regarding the transfer of land used by Vestia’s Industrial Zone in order to avoid future disputes (Law 19, signed by Luciano Vesti during the Seventy-Fifth Legislature on Day 7014).

The Pescatore Neighborhood is also home to the largest port in the Republic, built within the natural inlet to the northeast. Its operations are regulated by the Port Authority of Cismarina, headquartered in the building specifically constructed by Governor Nico Vinnisoci during the Thirty-Second Legislature between Day 4876 and Day 4881. The various warehouses for the storage of materials arriving from overseas were built afterward.

The Pescatore Neighborhood is served by five MetroCismarina stations: Borsa, Pescatore, Baia del Porto, Fondaci del Porto and Industria.

Pescatore’s Chapel and Monastery (Chiesetta del Pescatore e Monastero)

Chapel by Todd Tergi, 7th, 3524; Monastery: start Silvio Parri, 35th, 5041, inauguration Giuseppe Carsoni, 36th, 5069

The first territory of the Republic ever donated to the Church of Frank X. The construction of the Chapel dates back to the first urbanization of the Pescatore Neighborhood, while the Monastery and its gardens were built later.

The Monastery consists of a large corridor fitted with wide windows facing south, overlooking the gardens, and north, overlooking the sea. At the end of the great corridor, a refectory was constructed with a dining table capable of feeding ten people simultaneously.

The Chapel was among the humblest and most isolated in the City, and perhaps for this reason it became, for years, an object of veneration among the faithful Citizens, who would make their way along Pescatore’s Road to visit the place of worship and find a measure of silence and peace in the far north of the City.

San Francesco Cottage (Villino San Francesco)

Todd Tergi, 7th, 3541

A small villa built along the river by Todd Tergi during the first urbanization of the City, primarily intended as the Governor’s residence and as a warehouse for the resources gathered during the adaptation of the land for the construction of the new Neighborhood’s buildings.

It is equipped with several storage rooms for resources, a bedroom, a dock on the river, a forge room, and a large attic with a panoramic window.

To this day, it remains one of the preferred Official Residences of the Governors of the Republic, although it is no longer used as frequently as it once was.

Industrial Zone (Zona Industriale)

This was the first Industrial Zone of the City of Cismarina. Over the years and through successive Legislatures, it was equipped with more and more production machinery and factories, though everything began with the Cismarine Native Egg Factory, a large complex dedicated exclusively to egg production, still operational today and effectively the longest-running purpose-built productive building in the entire Republic.

This was followed by iron factories, beef and leather factories, and sugar cane factories.

Today, although still active, the Industrial Zone of the Pescatore Neighborhood is not frequently used, as its location is no longer central to the productive life of the Republic; nevertheless, it remains of vital importance for a future expansion of the Neighborhood.

Port of Cismarina (Porto di Cismarina)

The most important port in the Republic is undoubtedly the one located within Pescatore’s Bay. It is the northernmost port in the City of Cismarina and consists of various buildings dedicated to administration and the storage of resources recovered from overseas expeditions.

The Port Bay is constantly troubled by the problem of the Guardians, who repeatedly attempt to strike vessels during docking and unloading operations, and who indirectly caused the death of the glorious Governor Vesti.

Palace of Development and Square (Palazzo dello Sviluppo e Piazza)

Todd Tergi, 8th, 3560-3575

The first in a series of palaces that was never completed, originally conceived for the urban development of less served and less central areas within the territory of the City of Cismarina, the Palazzo dello Sviluppo built in the Pescatore Neighborhood was designed and constructed in an adaptation of the Art Deco style and possesses dimensions greater than any other structure in the Neighborhood.

The urbanization project also included the Square of the Palazzo dello Sviluppo, onto which face the Watchtower, constructed on ground elevated above the surrounding structures, and the Palace of the Stock Exchange.

The series of Palazzi dello Sviluppo was abandoned almost immediately due to the evident lack of resources necessary to sustain the systematic construction of such monumental works.

Palace of the Stock Exchange (Palazzo della Borsa)

Todd Tergi, 8th, 3589

Built upon part of the hillside leading toward the Campidoglio of the Villa Neighborhood, the Palace of the Stock Exchange was constructed in order to give an innovative purpose to an underutilized and underdeveloped part of the City, namely the establishment of a stock market.

The absence still today of an economic system within the Republic capable of supporting joint-stock companies prevented the Palace of the Stock Exchange from ever fulfilling its original purpose.

Nevertheless, it remains one of the most imposing and best-executed buildings in the northern quadrant of the City of Cismarina.

Ara Tergis

Todd Tergi, 9th, 3606-3611

Constructed on the occasion of Todd Tergi’s hundredth day governing the City, the Ara Tergis rises upon the eastern side of the hill on which the Campidoglio of the Villa Neighborhood stands.

Built primarily from wood obtained through the cutting of fir trees required for the urban development of the Pescatore Neighborhood, it is a work of remarkable visual impact despite its measured height.

It features a large square gathering hall and a staircase allowing access for visitors.