São Brás de Alportel's Municipal Master Plan Revision Questioned by PSD
The São Brás de Alportel branch of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) has publicly questioned the current status and quality of the municipality's Municipal Master Plan (PDM) revision process. In a formal statement, the party expressed concerns that the local population has been misled into believing the crucial planning document is already approved, when in fact it has only passed an initial council vote before being sent for regional review.
The statement clarifies that the proposal was recently approved in a council meeting for submission to the Algarve's Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR Algarve). This step initiates a longer process involving a consultative committee, a binding opinion from the CCDR, a period of public discussion, and final approval by the Municipal Assembly before it can be published and take effect. The party stressed, “The PDM is not yet approved and the process is ongoing, with crucial steps still missing.”
The PSD heavily criticized the substance of the proposed revision, labeling it as “politically poor, socially disconnected, and, above all, without a vision for the future.” The party alleges the document was prepared hastily and primarily serves a political goal of demonstrating progress rather than establishing a robust strategy for the municipality. According to the release, the proposal disproportionately focuses on reclassifying rustic land to urban, a response to what it says was the focus of 88% of public participation submissions, rather than addressing broader strategic needs.
The communiqué underscores the significant delays in updating the PDM, which was first approved in 1995 with an intended ten-year validity. For nearly thirty years, the municipality has operated under this outdated plan, a situation the PSD attributes to successive socialist administrations. “This delay... has left the municipality without a strategy and without access to development opportunities,” the statement reads, pointing to a history of failed promises to conclude the revision in 2015, 2018, and 2024.
The party argues that this prolonged state of inaction has resulted in tangible negative consequences, including the expenditure of tens of thousands of euros on a fruitless process and the inability to access national and European Union community funds. This has created, in their view, “almost three decades of indefiniteness in the planning of São Brás de Alportel.”
The PSD's position is that the municipality requires more than a simple bureaucratic update. They are advocating for a “true plan for the future — ambitious, balanced, and socially responsible.” Such a plan, according to the party, should effectively organize the territory, guarantee the availability of affordable housing, create favorable conditions for economic growth, and protect the natural landscape of the Serra.
Concluding their statement, the PSD affirmed their commitment to monitoring the remainder of the PDM revision process with “rigor, transparency, and demand.” Their stated vision is to help construct a “fairer, more sustainable, more attractive, and better-prepared municipality for future generations.” The progression of the PDM revision will now depend on the feedback from the CCDR Algarve and the subsequent mandatory procedural steps, which will be watched closely by local political stakeholders.
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