The exchange of land on Rua da Praia de Pedrouços, in the parish of Belém, foresees a fee of around €559 thousand for the difference in area of the property that will be acquired from the municipality.

In the plenary meeting, the proposal was approved with votes against by Chega, BE, Livre, PCP and an independent deputy from Cidadãos Por Lisboa (elected by the PS/Livre coalition) and with votes in favour from PS, PSD, PAN, IL, MPT, PPM, CDS-PP and Aliança.

On February 23, the document was made viable, and the chamber unanimously approved the promotion of a public debate on the project for the Jewish Museum in Belém, considering the exception in compliance with the system provided for in the Plano Diretor Municipal (PDM).

In accordance with the proposal, one of the plots of land in the plan for the construction of the Jewish Museum in Lisbon, with an area of 185 square meters, is privately owned.

On Rua da Praia de Pedrouços, the municipality owns a building with a total area of 1,273 square meters, consisting of land suitable for construction, and the Direção Municipal de Urbanismo (DMU) has developed a preliminary urban study on this municipal property, which revealed an available plot of land with an area of 774,28 square meters.

“The Direção Municipal de Gestão Patrimonial (DMGP) began negotiations with the owner of the private land, which resulted in the exchange of the land for the portion of the municipal land, with an area of 774,28 square meters”, reads the proposal signed by Carlos Moedas.

Fábio Costa, PCP deputy, justified the vote against the exchange with the fact that “it will result in the loss of public land” and it can be used for the “production of 12 or 13 municipal structures at affordable prices”, adding that the construction of the Jewish Museum should be done with “the acquisition of the necessary property”.

Isabel Mendes from Livre warned that “the municipality is giving up land where affordable housing can be built” and advised further negotiation with the private owner.

Speaking in favour of the construction of the Jewish Museum, Chega deputy Bruno Mascarenhas considered “the location unsuitable, due to the proximity to the Belém Tower”.

Representing the chamber, councillor Diogo Moura (CDS-PP) responded to the criticism regarding the loss of land which could be used for the construction of houses by affirming the project for the Jewish Museum will be subject to public debate and the architectural project will also be assessed.