The city's motto — "non sta mai ferma" — could be loosely translated as "We don't sit still."
But Torino, Italy, which will take up the Olympic flag Sunday, prefers the English translation of "always on the move."
The 2006 Winter Olympics will begin a new era for the Italian city of 80,000, say the Torino Olympic planners.
"People think Torino is a gray, industrial city. It's known only for the car industry," said Anna Martina, spokeswoman for Torino Mayor Sergio Chiamparino. Tourism and high technology are replacing the long-gone Fiat factory, she added. "And when people come, they find a new city, a different city."
In that sense Torino is not so different from Salt Lake City. Its mayor fervently hopes the Winter Games will update the city's image — so Torino will cease to be the Detroit of Italy, and take its place alongside Florence and Venice as a tourist destination.
Chiamparino, speaking through an interpreter, didn't hesitate when asked what his two aspirations are for 2006.
"We want to do a good job as has been done here in Salt Lake City. And second, we want to finish the transformation" of Torino.
Chiamparino met Thursday with Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson at Casa Italia, the sumptuously decorated 19th floor of the Wells Fargo Center.
Valentino Castellani, president of the Torino Organizing Committee (TOROC), joined the mayors' chorus of praise for the Salt Lake Games. But Torino's planning process differs: Castellani served two terms as mayor before becoming TOROC chief, and the organizing committee is more native than is SLOC. "We have hired many people from within our city," Castellani said.
Torino, in its efforts to impress the world with both its history and its modernity, is placing a significant piece of its rail system underground; theaters and museums are planned along with Olympic sport venues.
Castellani said the Italian Alps region faces challenges. "You have much more space here," he said. Five million people live in the Piemonte, Italy's counterpart to the Wasatch Front.
E-mail: durbani@desnews.com