The Lisbon City Council today approved a proposal from the PCP for the municipality to make a diagnosis of the impact of tourism in the capital, which is then integrated into the revision of the Municipal Master Plan (PDM).
[dropcap type=”background”]T[/dropcap]he document received the favourable votes of the PCP, PS and CDS, the abstention of BE and the vote against PSD.
The proposal of the communists, argues that a process of diagnosis and evaluation of positive and negative impacts of tourism at the local level, especially in the central parishes of Lisbon, should be triggered. a Lisbon Tourism Charter and introduce an appropriate concept of Tourism Cargo Capacity, to be developed with the contribution of various services of the Lisbon Chamber, universities, associations and other civil society organizations.
The PCP councilors, led by João Ferreira, want this Charter of Tourism to “serve as an instrument to support the diagnosis, planning and planning of the tourist activity in the city, in the different scales of urban planning and be integrated in a future revision of the PDM , establishing general objectives and identifying environmental, social, cultural and economic conditions of equilibrium for the communities “.
Speaking at the session, Green Council member José Sá Fernandes (Citizens for Lisbon, elected on the PS list) said that this is a “well-made and innovative proposal” and a “city planning instrument”.
The head of Housing, Paula Marques (Citizens for Lisbon, elected on the PS list), added that the document “does not collide at all” with the “concern of the executive with the gentrification” caused by tourism.
Already PSD councillor João Pedro Costa defended that it is “unacceptable that five months have passed since the delivery of this proposal” and that it is “antiquated“.
João Ferreira recalled that the proposal “was delivered in September” and stated that it would not be delayed again, despite the request of the councillors who lead the municipal executive.
At the meeting today, four proposals were put off by the Councilor for Education, Manuel Grilo (BE – that has an agreement of governance of the county with the PS), regarding the allocation of financial support to associations.
These points generated a long and intense discussion, with the councilor of the PSD Teresa Leal Coelho to defend that during this mandate, 34.8 million euros have been approved in financing “to entities that are not accountable” to the municipality, with the city councillor Finance, João Paulo Saraiva, and the person in charge of Education, to counteract that the documents exist.
The deputy mayor of the municipality, João Paulo Saraiva, rejected the idea that “no execution reports are made by these associations and ensured that the documents will be handed over to the councillors”.
The Lisbon Chamber, led by the socialist Fernando Medina, has again postponed a proposal of the CDS-PP so that the exercise of preemptive rights by the municipality is decided by the executive when it comes to the transmission of classified real estate valued between 290 thousand and 600 thousand euros.
The Municipal Director of Property Management, António Furtado, said that if the proposal is approved, the services will have “increased problems” in responding to the “ten-day legal deadline“ participation process, noting that in 2018 130 thousand processes.
Following this information, Teresa Leal Coelho was “impressed by the numbers mentioned” and requested that the proposal BE postponed.
