News Porto.

The network of municipal pools in Porto are granted the Covid Safe logo, by APCER, as determined by the Authority for Working Conditions. As such, the municipal pools of Cartes and the Constituição meet the necessary health conditions.

Applications for the Concurso Montras de Natal 2020 [Xmas Windows Contest 2020] have been extended till today, 2nd December. The closing day was 30th November, however, owing to the grant of day-off by the Government, the Municipality of Porto extended applications deadline for today, 2nd December.

The negative impact of the pandemic is showing of the number of companies and investors, close to one hundred the first week alone, that have requested the specialised service of the support line “Revitaliza Porto”, a free support service launched by the Municipality of Porto, via InvestPorto, whose goal is to support the business community in the city of Porto in the response to the pandemic crisis.

Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the President of the Regional Government of Galicia stated that “Porto has taught us a lesson in cosmopolitanism, openness, internationalisation, culture and tourism and for that it is the most relevant of the euroregion”. This statement was proffered on 27th November, the day Braga launched its application for Braga 2027 - European Capital of Culture.

Rui Moreira, Mayor of Porto, announced on 30th November that the Municipality is preparing measures to support local traders in the Christmas business. Owing to the new coronavirus pandemic, local retailers are threatened by the sharp drop in sales. Also, this year the Municipality decided that no giant Xmas tree swill stand out in Avenida dos Aliados, and instead the amount will be destined to support the package of measures to help local retailers.

Although in a different year, celebrating Xmas is more important than ever, and even if there will be no Xmas tree standing in the Avenida dos Aliados this year, there will be plenty of light in the streets to celebrate the jolly season, as this is “the season to be merry!”. In addition, Porto City Hall, via Ágora created the “Adventário”, a project targeted at the younger audiences and whose goal is to celebrate Xmas, this time in the digital platforms.

This season, Porto Municipal Theatre (TMP) features both in-person and online performances. The TMP invited eight artists to provide a special artistic creation and offer audiences new insights on the cultural realm. The project is called PAR(S) – Artes Performativas e Imagem Online [Online Performance Arts and Image”, free translation] and it kicks on 1st December, with Cláudia Varejão and Joana Castro, director and choreographer and dancer, respectively.

The Cultura em Expansão will take Santa Claus to the Hard Club, on 29th November, at 11am. The performance “Olá, eu sou o Pai Natal” [“Hi, I’m Santa Claus”, free translation] will be delivered by Tiago Barbosa, who gives the traditional tale a twist. Barbosa will play around the modern character of Santa Claus, based on the historical Saint Nicholas, raising awareness on global issues such as gifts and the consumer society.

STCP bus fleet in Porto will adjust the offer of services on weekends and holidays, starting at 1pm, following the slump in demand of circa 70%. This weekend, the STCP bus fleet implements timetable changes, by reducing 10% the offer of bus services, starting after 1pm on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

The Townsman Office (Gabinete do Munícipe) offers the Intercultural and Municipal Mediation service, which is available upon prior appointment. The Municipality of Porto had already launched the project that involves the implementation of intercultural assistance within the city, with four intercultural mediators, in 2019; thus, three mediators work with the Roma community, and one mediator offers assistance to migrant communities.