The heritage defense association VIAN'ACORDA accused the Chamber of Viana do Castelo of proceeding with the construction of the new municipal market, on the site where the Coutinho building stood, violating multiple legal precepts. The Administrative and Tax Court of Braga provisionally admitted the precautionary request filed by the association to stop the works, with the aim of safeguarding the archaeological findings discovered on the site.
VIAN'ACORDA points to four serious breaches: the project does not respect the constraints of the Detailed Plan for the Historic Center of Viana do Castelo; the construction of a basement violates the Water Law by being located in a flood zone; the project proceeds without prior assessment of acoustic impact on the comfort of the surrounding residential area; and only archaeological surveys at superficial levels were conducted, with destruction of remains without presentation of a final report. The association states that these alleged irregularities occurred with the silence or complicity of CCDR-N, the Ministry of Culture, and the Ministry of Environment.
The works resumed on September 1st, after being suspended in January due to an archaeological intervention that revealed non-religious structures of the former São Bento Convent, founded in the 16th century. The Chamber stated that it is finalizing the valorization project for the findings, proposing to integrate them into the future Archaeology Hub to be implemented in the Praia Norte business area, with the remains having been preserved through cartographic, photographic, and digital recording.
The mayor, Luís Nobre, assured that the municipality has always complied and will continue to comply with the law, announcing that it will activate all administrative and judicial mechanisms against the association for any delays, loss of funding, and associated costs. The socialist mayor emphasized that collective interest overrides private interest and that he will never abandon this principle.
