In a very hot August like the one we've had, Jardim do Torel could have been a place of refreshment in the middle of the city. But the eighteenth-century pond, which has welcomed tens of thousands of visitors, is without water and the kiosk is closed. The parish council guarantees that the situation will change by the end of the year.
Eight years after the end of Jardim do Torel's famous “urban beach”, an initiative that put the discreet green space on Santana hill on Lisbon's tourist map, the 18th-century pond that received tens of thousands of visitors is without water and the kiosk is closed. The tender for its concession will be launched soon, and by the end of the year, “the kiosk will be standing”, The president of the Junta de Santo António assures us. Between praise and criticism of the green space located on one of the hillsides that slopes down to Avenida da Liberdade, residents and visitors share the desire to see this Lisbon refuge reborn.
Opened in 2014, the Jardim do Torel urban beach has transformed this hidden treasure in the heart of Lisbon into one of the capital's most popular spots. This summer alone, it welcomed 80,000 people, “an abnormal flow”, Vasco Morgado, president of the Santo António parish council, admitted at the time that the project was relevant.
The enthusiasm, however, was short-lived. In 2017, with the loss of interest from sponsors and high maintenance costs, However, the initiative came to an end. In the following years, the council opted to empty the lake for safety reasons and because of the lack of funds needed for police surveillance. The kiosk also closed and has been abandoned for several years, with some signs of vandalism.
The almost century-old garden - built on the terraces of an old 18th century farmhouse, acquired by the Lisbon City Council in 1929 and transformed into a public garden three years later - has been upgraded in 2008 and more recently in 2020. This latest intervention, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, has earned praise from residents, although some criticism remains.
“Kiosk is sorely missed”
Some people heard by Lisboa para Pessoas on an August morning recall the urban beach with nostalgia. “I remember when there was water. They should do it again, it brought a lot of people together”, says Rosa Somsen, who has lived in that part of the city for a decade, while walking her dog. Even without the kiosk, where “if I could have coffee”, he recalls, “it's still a good place for an afternoon stroll”.
Emerita Maia, who lives in the area, shares the same opinion. “I think it would look better with water”, However, he believes that the garden “is well kept and clean”. “I walk my dog every day and I've noticed that after the redevelopment it's improved a lot”, he praises. But he leaves suggestions: “There's no drinking fountain for the dogs and the kiosk is also very much needed.”
Emília Melo, from Viana do Castelo, visits the capital where she has her family every summer. Jardim do Torel is always a must. “I thought it was a bit abandoned, if it (the tank) had water it would look different, more tidy”, points out.
A reality that is about to change, as the council will soon be launching a public tender to operate the space.
“There were problems with the concessionaire of the kiosk and now a public tender is going to be opened, we're waiting for it to be published in the Official Gazette. By the end of the year, it will be back up and running”, The mayor of Santo António, Vasco Morgado, details some of the obstacles that led the previous concessionaire to give up.
“That kiosk has a problem, it has an elementary school underneath. It's very attractive from the viewpoint, but then it has a series of rules that the other concessionaire didn't want to comply with... These are problems with the rules, which led to the contract being terminated.”he explains.
“Even today people call me to ask about the urban beach”
Vasco Morgado, the mayor in charge of the urban beach initiative, also explained to LPP that this, “one of the council's projects, from the 2013/2017 term, was always done with sponsors (such as Santa Casa da Misericórdia and a national bank) and, when these ran out, the expenses were immense and it was decided to leave it behind”.
“It had a high cost and sponsors were no longer interested and, at that time, post-troika, we opted to spend money on other things, like building the social supermarket or Espaço Júlia. There was a year when the plumbing had to be changed in the garden, but the following year we did it again”, he explains.
Asked if there are any expectations of a possible return of the urban beach, Morgado points out that he is about to leave office. “I don't know if it will come back with the next executive, I can't run anymore”, the chairman of the board of directors over the last 12 years.
“Even today people call the council asking about the beach, but it is what it is. We've been doing other things, like the cinema in the Torel garden (in August), which has been really good”he adds.
For its part, Lisbon City Council explains that “the kiosk belongs to CML and was granted by the Santo António Parish Council, under a CDC [Contract for the Delegation of Competences]”. ”The previous concessionaire has abandoned the concession. We are trying to resolve the matter as soon as possible”, he adds.
