The Faro City Council today approved a loan of nearly 14 million euros and terminated a previous 16.42-million-euro loan agreement for projects that never reached the financial execution stage, the local authority announced.
The new financing is primarily earmarked for the urban redevelopment of the Bairro Ribeirinho district, the construction of the coastal greenway (Ecovia do Litoral) between Faro and Olhão, and the Pontes de Marchil roundabout, the Faro City Council stated.
The council approved the proposal with the support of the four Socialist Party (PS) members, while the three elected members from the Social Democratic Party (PSD) abstained; the council had previously rejected it on 21 September. The version approved today now includes the Pontes de Marchil roundabout project.
The redevelopment of the Bairro Ribeirinho accounts for the largest share of the investment, at approximately 5.18 million euros, followed by the greenway between Faro and Olhão at 3.95 million euros, and the Pontes de Marchil roundabout at 3.06 million euros.
The local authority noted that the medium- to long-term loan will still require prior authorisation from the Municipal Assembly.
The financing also covers the expansion of the Penha football field, estimated at 1.02 million euros, and the redevelopment of Largo Francisco Sá Carneiro, budgeted at approximately 768,000 euros.
According to the municipality, some of these projects have since been completed, and the investment estimates include price-revision adjustments.
The loan agreement, now terminated, was originally approved in 2023 to fund four initiatives: the redevelopment of the central axis of downtown Faro, the expansion of the Porta Nova port infrastructure, the Pontes de Marchil roundabout, and the greenway between Faro and Olhão. According to the public authority, none of these investments reached the financial execution stage because the projects lacked maturity.
The Baixa Central Axis and the Pontes de Marchil roundabout redevelopment required design revisions. At the same time, the expansion of the port infrastructure at Porta Nova failed to meet the conditions stipulated in external assessments.
Regarding the ecovia (greenway/cycle path), the City Council added that the public procurement process yielded no bids and that it had not secured the acquisition of all land parcels necessary for the project’s execution.
The Court of Auditors approved the previous loan on 9 February 2024, with the maximum period for capital utilisation set to expire on 9 February 2027.
Given the lack of financial execution and the current stage of investment development, the municipality determined that the conditions for maintaining the contract were no longer met.