There’s a great little debate going on in Italy right now about who owns the famous Michelangelo sculpture of David. It looks like the Mayor of Florence, 35-year-old Matteo Renzi, is trying to pick a fight with the central government in Rome and the Ministry of Culture.

Renzi, who’s sharp and very simpatico, as they say in Italian, claims there’s really no debate, and that the documents show the ownership is the city of Florence, and not the Italian government.

Yet it’s the central government that pulls in all the money from the tourists visiting the David statue, which comes to more than $10 million a year.

Renzi told FOXNews.com that the money could come in handy, but it’s not the important thing. “Our real challenge is to have a city that’s always more beautiful and always more welcoming,” he said.

He complains about the central government getting all the proceeds from the museum housing the David statue, known as the Accademia, and yet not cleaning the graffiti on the outside walls that has been left by tourists waiting in line.

He’d also like to see some movement in expanding and modernizing the nationally-run Uffizi Gallery, widely considered one of the greatest museums in the world.

Some eight million people a year visit Florence, which many people consider the most beautiful city in Italy. That’s open to debate (as is President Obama’s comment that it’s got the best food in Italy).

Florence is competing in the beauty category with places like Rome and Venice, which are not easy to beat, but Renzi appears determined to make a great place to visit even a little better.