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Project Aimed at Revolutionising the Faro Commercial Port Convinces Minister and Investors
4 January 2018
The Faro City Council and CCMAR’s plan for the Algarve capital’s commercial port, the Farformosa project, is attracting investors and was welcomed “in general” by the Minister of the Sea, who decided to create a working group “with the aim of presenting the Spatial Planning Project for the Faro Commercial Port and Commercial Wharf.” The order formalising the creation of this group was published in Diário da República, on January 2.
Rogério Bacalhau, the mayor of Faro, told Sul Informação that, in a meeting with Ana Paula Vitorino in December, “we presented our vision for the area. The minister welcomed the idea in general, and we agreed upon the creation of a commission that, within 90 days, will study our project for the urbanisation of the area.
According to the mayor, the publication of the order, formalising the creation of the working group, has already been completed, stating that “is very gratifying for us and, in the next 90 days, we will be able to take measures regarding the future of that space, which had been abandoned, of use to no one.”
The Mayor of Faro told Sul Informação that he had received contacts from investors and representatives of foreign and Portuguese investors asking for information. We have another investor coming in today who wants to learn more about the project. This gives us some assurance that if [the project] is developed well, that it can become a reality and an asset for the region and the country.”
The ordinance published by the Ministry of the Sea states that the working group has the objective “of presenting a Spatial Planning Project for the Faro Commercial Port and Commercial Wharf,” including activities and zones dedicated to specific and diversified activities in the area of the Sea, the draft schedule for the implementation of the objectives, the strategic environmental assessment and the economic-financial evaluation of the project.
The trusteeship considers that “the development and creation of infrastructure for supporting activities linked to scientific research, entrepreneurship in maritime activities, recreation, nautical and maritime sports and tourism will permit the creation of synergies that will lead to the harmonious growth of the city.”
The working group is to be composed of a representative of the Minister of the Sea, three representatives of the Faro City Council, a representative of the Sines and Algarve Port Administration, a representative of Docapesca and a representative of the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere.
The Farformosa project was conceived by CCMAR of the University of Algarve and by the Faro City Council and provides for the creation of an enterprise that combines research and teaching with tourism, namely with the construction of a marina, an aquarium, several hotels and assisted residences for the elderly.
Original Story: Sul Informação – Nuno Costa
Translation: Richard Turner