A new enforcement action of the “anti-junk store” resolution. The former haberdashery had become a souvenir shop, but without a SCIA (Certificate of Conduct for the Protection of the Environment) and with an unauthorized ATECO (Article 101) code. Costalonga: “The controls are working, and will continue.”
By Leonardo Bison
September 5, 2025
Local police will close a tourist jewelry and souvenir shop in Cannaregio (Santi Apostoli) due to serious irregularities. This closure is also linked to the enforcement of the municipal “anti-junk store” regulation, which prohibits specific types of businesses from opening in certain areas of the historic city, namely San Marco and the streets with the heaviest tourist traffic.
The business, explains Councilor for Commerce Sebastiano Costalonga, had opened without submitting a Certified Notification of Commencement of Business (SCIA), and at the same time was selling jewelry and souvenirs in an area subject to the “anti-junk store” restriction, which expressly prohibits this type of merchandise. Consequently, even with a proper SCIA the permit would not have been granted. The business was immediately fined, and the authorities will prepare a closure order.
“It was made clear, through official channels and following newspaper reports, to both the former and new owners that any subsequent opening of a shop with this classification would be blocked, as it did not comply with the guidelines set out in the new anti-junk store regulation,” explains Councilor Costalonga. It would have been possible, however, through a takeover procedure and in full compliance with the regulations, to open a lingerie retail business (like the previous one), or even to open another kind of business, following a SCIA (an environmental safety and health authority) that had an ATECO code compliant with those permitted by the resolution.
How the “anti-junk store” regulation works
In short, from 2022 onwards, and specifically with the latest resolution of June 2025, the Municipality of Venice prohibits the opening of new commercial businesses that are primarily tourist-oriented or unstaffed (ATMs, laundromats) in certain areas of Venice’s historic center. Existing businesses, however, may remain open, and lateral takeovers are possible within the same ATECO code. To do more, the municipality would require authority from more stringent national regulations.
This ban is failing to prevent the opening of businesses that, despite using an ATECO code for services that are ostensibly aimed at the city (perfumeries, textiles, or similar), or craft businesses, which are permitted by the regulations, actually offer products designed for tourist traffic. A recent case was a nail salon in the Rialto area, which replaced a bookstore. However, the councilor assures that local police checks continue, because the goods sold must correspond to what is declared in the business start-up declaration, and this isn’t always the case.
“The controls are working and will continue rigorously,” Costalonga stated. “Anyone who thinks they can open without following the rules should know that in Venice there is no room for shortcuts or illegal activities. Our priority is to ensure legality, quality of offerings, and urban decorum, protecting honest merchants and the image of our beautiful city.”
Source: Venezia Today
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