The Iniciativa Liberal of Portimão criticized the way the municipal executive has conducted, since February 2025, the process concerning the Urban Rehabilitation Area (ARU) and the Urban Rehabilitation Operation (ORU) of the historic centre, pointing out failures in meeting deadlines, in the justification of decisions and in the provision of information.
According to the party, the ORU expired without the Municipal Council having ensured its timely extension, with the executive subsequently seeking to extend it for another five years with retroactive effects. At the Municipal Assembly, IL deputy Sofia de Landerset abstained, expressing reservations about the conduct of the process and about the option for a retroactive solution.
The IL is now questioning the municipality's position that the objectives of the ORU have been exhausted, claiming that no execution or evaluation report has been presented that allows understanding of which targets were achieved, which remain unfulfilled and the concrete results of the operation. The party requests that the elements supporting this conclusion be made available, as well as documentation related to the intervention of the Institute of Housing and Urban Rehabilitation.
The party focuses its criticism on the governance and transparency of the process, arguing that the urban rehabilitation of the historic centre should be based on planning, continuity, rigour and transparency. The IL also warns of the possible effects of the management of these instruments on property owners, investors and economic agents who make decisions based on the applicable framework and associated benefits.
