ROME -- Roma's long-delayed plans for a new stadium have taken a positive turn following a meeting with city officials.
Vice Mayor Luca Bergamo expressed his approval on Tuesday over Roma's scaled-down project, which the club wants to build in Tor di Valle, halfway between downtown and Leonardo Da Vinci Airport.
Roma's general manager Mauro Baldissoni said: "We've always said we want to build this stadium together with the city. We've tried to understand the needs of the city council and I think we've done so."
Bergamo's support signals that the city will likely give formal approval next month.
The mostly privately financed €1.6 billion project has been criticised by environmentalists for its proposed location next to the Tiber River.
With a design inspired by the Colosseum, the stadium is slated to seat 52,500 and be expandable to 60,000 for major matches. Roma currently share the government-owned Stadio Olimpico with city rival Lazio.
James Pallotta, Roma's American president, first presented the stadium plan in March 2014, saying then that it would be ready for the 2016-17 season.
However, then-mayor Ignazio Marino acknowledged that stadium would not open before an extensive amount of transport infrastructure was completed around the area.