Alexandre Herculano High School honoured with urban rehabilitation award

The in-depth rehabilitation and modernisation work at the Alexandre Herculano High School has received the SIL 2024 Real Estate Award. The project was inaugurated in September 2023 and involved an investment of more than 11.5 million euros. At the same event, which took place between 2 and 5 May, the Porto City Council, through the municipal company Porto Vivo, SRU, promoted its affordable rent programme to potential investors.

Located in the parish of Bonfim, the Alexandre Herculano High School building is one of the most important works by architect José Marques da Silva in the city of Porto and was inaugurated in 1934. It represents a totally innovative phase for educational establishments at the time. It still maintains this quality, and even stands out compared to similar works. The original design of this iconic building was restored during the works. As part of this process, annexes with no architectural value that had been added to the school over the years were demolished.

'The library spaces, previously secondary, now occupy a central building, with great importance, opening onto the main façade. It was also necessary to create a new canteen of the right size and to restore the main amphitheatre, which was badly damaged. The introduction of four lifts sought to fully satisfy functional needs, without them being too intrusive. The galleries' openings bordering the central courtyard, which were inexplicably closed in the meantime, were reopened. The work obviously included the restoration and replacement of the detailing and infrastructure affected by use or improper management,' describe the authors of the Alexandre Herculano High School rehabilitation project, architects Alexandre Alves Costa and Sérgio Fernandez.

The work ranged from rehabilitating floors, ceilings and walls to upgrading interior spaces, auditoriums, renovating window frames and roofs and restoring structural elements. The building has gained new features, especially in terms of mobility, with the installation of lifts, a platform lift and an external ramp.

The project received EU funding through the NORTE 2020 Regional Operational Programme.

The SIL 2024 Award was awarded in the 'Urban Rehabilitation - Commerce, Services and Offices' category. The award was presented to the councillor for Urbanism and Public Space, Pedro Baganha, who is also GO Porto's chairman, the municipality's construction management company, which was responsible for the development at the Alexandre Herculano High School.

Affordable Housing in the spotlight

Meanwhile, during the Lisbon Real Estate Fair, the Porto City Council, through the municipal company Porto Vivo, SRU, promoted its affordable rent programme to potential investors. The Porto com Sentido project was designed to capture housing on the private market for subsequent subletting at affordable prices, i.e. at least 20% below market value.

At an event marked by the sharing of experiences between various players in the housing and/or rehabilitation market, the Porto Vivo, SRU delegation, led by the councillor for Housing and chairman of the company's board of directors, Pedro Baganha, explained the municipality's strategy for responding to citizens' wishes in terms of housing.

'Without ideological prejudices, without miracle recipes, all means are valid for generating solutions that meet the needs of citizens. We have chosen the creation and strengthening of the affordable rental market as a strategic priority,' said Pedro Baganha, adding: 'that is precisely what we are doing, whether through synergies with private companies or through construction, which is highly leveraged by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR). This commitment has allowed us to place 300 homes on the affordable rent market so far.'

Also as part of the Lisbon Real Estate Fair programme, more specifically within the programme of the CNN Portugal Summit programme, Rui Moreira and Isaltino Morais, mayors of Porto and Oeiras, respectively, explained their intervention models and the challenges their municipalities face in terms of housing, in a conversation moderated by journalist Anselmo Crespo.