ICOMOS requests urgent clarifications from Porto City Council over works in UNESCO World Heritage Historic Centre

ICOMOS asks Porto City Council for “urgent clarifications”

The International Council on Monuments and Sites has asked Porto City Council for “urgent clarifications” about a number of building contracts in the city’s historic centre, including within the area listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the organisation told Lusa.

In a statement, the NGO focused on the conservation, protection and enhancement of monuments, ensembles and sites said: “ICOMOS PT, within the scope of its mission, requested urgent clarifications from the municipality of Porto regarding the reported interventions, namely whether they were approved and on what grounds. If they were not approved, what steps were taken within the framework of inspection and enforcement in accordance.”

Works in the Historic Centre of Porto under scrutiny

Lusa approached ICOMOS Portugal (the Portuguese branch of the International Council on Monuments and Sites) about the alteration and extension works that the Diocese of Porto recently began at the Seminário Maior de Nossa Senhora da Conceição, next to Porto Cathedral (Sé). Those works have prompted some opposition among residents of the Historic Centre, and they are not the only interventions in the area to have sparked debate.

In its reply to Lusa, ICOMOS Portugal noted that it has been drawing attention “for several years” to “various management and conservation problems” affecting the Historic Centre of Porto.

Confeitaria Serrana: demolition, enforcement and the “Circuito Criativo”

On Tuesday, Porto Mayor Pedro Duarte told the Municipal Assembly that the municipality had filed an administrative offence notice over the demolition of the interior of Confeitaria Serrana, adding that the works caused “surprise, indignation, astonishment” among municipal services.

The demolition of the Confeitaria Serrana interior was first reported by newspaper Público, which said the property’s owner had illegally destroyed the building’s “contents” on Rua do Loureiro. The owner, Grupo Lionesa-also the company behind Livraria Lello-intends to create a “Circuito Criativo” in that block. The City Council admitted it was unaware this had happened and confirmed the works did not comply with the terms of a licensing decision issued before the current executive.

Only the façade and a handful of items remain, including a centuries-old painting by Acácio Lino. The shop held the Porto de Tradição seal awarded in 2018, and the building was designed by architect Francisco Oliveira Ferreira.

ICOMOS awaits technical and administrative documentation

“Aguardamos que nos sejam remetidos os elementos (técnicos e administrativos) sobre os processos em causa para nos podermos pronunciar com mais rigor sobre estes assuntos”, ICOMOS Portugal added.