Palermo suffers from a number of urban problems, but few of them are unique among major cities, although the combination of them may be. The center of the city has been suffering from depopulation, and was neglected for decades after World War II. Numerous decaying slum areas grew around bombing sites, and many of the buildings in the area were in danger of collapsing. In the past decade though, a group of architects and conservationists have been working with the town planning office, creating detailed plans to restore and renovate the city center.

Traffic and parking continues to be a major problem in Palermo, with nothing being done about noise levels and speed control. Much of this stems from the lack of major road arteries in the city. Creating these would be near impossible, with the high number of historic sites throughout the city center. Also, numerous weddings take place in the churches in the center of the city throughout the year. Public transportation functions with difficulty, however the underground rail line, creation of mini-bus services in the historic center, and other measures have been taken to help alleviate the congestion.

The local administration has a long standing history of dishonesty and inefficency. This is a part of distrust in the government that has been embedded in Sicilian culture, due to centuries of outside control, and more recently, a disproportionate distrobution of resources by the Italian government to northern Italy while neglecting the south. At the same time, the local civil cervice has created a large number of jobs for the population, and the hiring of officials within it is rife with nepotism. The mafia also has a history of recieving favors from the government in such ways as obtaining building permits and government contracts, and this often creates distrust and innefeciency in the government. Much of this has been changing though with the landslide election of mayor Orlando Leoluca in 1993 and his reelection in 1997. He has taken a strong stand against organized crime, street crime, and the problems within the administration. Along with many other measures his administration has made, an amazing turnaround of the city has be seen in the last few years.

Palermo still has to deal with the high unemployment rate that can be found throughout the island. Southern Italy never underwent a full scale industrial revolution, and as a result, relies heavily on tertiary industries for employment. There has been a boost in the economy recently though, due to the cleaning of the city. Tourism has increased, and industries once afraid of locating in the city are starting to move there. It seems as though Palermo is on an upswing, and with the constant agressive creation of new plans and programs for urban renewal, the city will continue to move in that direction. The protection of the hinterland (Conca d'Oro) is also helping the regeneration of the city center, by stopping urban sprawl. In my opinion, the continued expansion of public transportation (especially the underground rail line), the continuation of the works of Urban Palermo, investing more energy in growth of the University, and pushing for more high-tech industries in the city will have a highly positive effect on the city. The election of 2001 will be interesting, because this is Leoluca's final term, and his successor will have a major impact on the future of the city.