Faro harbour development - locals ignore public consultation

A large development in front of Faro’s existing harbour attracted three comments during the public consultation stage.

The proposed 270-berth marina with restaurants and cafes seem of little interest to the citizens of Faro with less than a handful of written observations collected by the Commission for Coordination and Regional Development - Algarve, whcih is handling the process and is responsible for issuing the final opinion on this major change to Faro’s existing waterfront..

There is no start date yet, nor has a call for tenders gone out with the mayor saying the project will take a while to authorise and build.

The new 'recreation port' is to be located in front of the current harbour on the southern side of the railway line and comes under the management of Docapesca which considers that the work should be paid for by someone else, suggesting already that a private company could build the marina and then be allowed to ‘develop adjacent infrastructure.’

This is Docapesca’s way of saying any developer could be allowed to build and sell residential properties next to the new marina.

Faro’s Mayor, Rogério Bacalhau, said that this "is another step in the structural project for the city," but that the plan will take "at least two or three years" with the build estimated to take 18 months.

Faro then, is preparing to authorise 2.9 hectares of waterfront to be carved out of the Ria Formosa natural area to be replaced by restaurants, a public square and the opportunity for "long walks along the sea front."

There will be a reception area and an administrative space, three 300m2 restaurants, terraces and a building for the Nautical Club which may need to be moved from its current site overlooking the existing harbour.

In addition the project includes dredging another area to create an anchorage with a capacity for a further 275 vessels and a dozen or so local fishing boats.

There will be a fuel point, an onshore area for boat storage, a ramp and a ten ton crane.

One of the problems is the railway line and how vehicles and pedestrians are going to get from one side to the other. One proposals is to build an elevated road starting near the municipal theatre.

Bacalhau wants this project and says it is "a necessity if we want to develop that area of ​​the city" but as for the railway line crossing, he does not know who will finance this infrastructure.

It is curious that the good citizens of Faro have not got involved in this major project that would change the layout of their city for ever.

Polis Ria Formosa, normally knocking things down rather than building them up, controls aspects of the project that encroach on the natural park yet all is silent from that quarter, also.

Many of the Algarve’s councils specialise in approving projects without funding and end up with long delays as ‘funds from Europe’ are sought. Bacalhau’s vagueness at this early stage should not be mistaken for vacillation as a project of this dimension in the region’s capital should have property developers lining up.

Any such company will of course want to build smart, riverside apartments and the game inevitably will commence between council and developer to mysteriously add a substantial residential element to the project, “or the development will not be viable.”

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