The saga of the Mini Eco Bar Container at Reis Magos rumbles on.
The Santa Cruz City Council reminds everyone that the administrative possession of the container installed without a municipal license on the Promenade of Praia dos Reis Magos was scheduled for tomorrow. However, it reveals that it was informed today by the Court and the Regional Directorate for the Environment and the Sea that this request is suspended, due to the businessman having filed a precautionary measure attached to one of the ongoing court cases.
In a statement, the local authority regrets that “its purpose of restoring legality is being repeatedly delayed by legal mechanisms, and, even more seriously, with the approval and protection of a governmental body, in this case the Regional Directorate for the Environment and the Sea”.
And it continues: “We want to make it clear to our citizens that we are doing everything we can to return that space to all those who used it, as well as to replace the street furniture, which consisted of various exercise equipment that belonged to the entire population and that was removed in the name of purely private interests.”
Can I just remind those airheads at Camara Santa Cruz that the equipment was unusable due to its poor condition . I agree the container should never have been put there in the first place, but thats the fault or the Câmara again.
And he adds: “Furthermore, public health issues arise here, since there is no connection to the drinking water network, nor do we know where the wash water or any waste from a toilet, which we don’t even know if it exists, is being directed. Where is ARAE?”
It is worth remembering that “the administrative seizure of the container was aimed at the coercive enforcement of several unfulfilled municipal regulations and comes after a court decision.”
“The issue at hand is the lack of a municipal license for the installation of a container, operating as a stationary unit, on the promenade of Praia dos Reis Magos,” it states.
And it continues: “Although the bar and terrace structure borders the Maritime Public Domain, the truth is that the powers and titles issued by the Directorate of Environment and Sea do not replace the other powers of this local authority, as per the Court’s decision, which is clear regarding the improper exploitation of the plot of land located on the Reis Magos promenade, in the parish of Caniço, municipality of Santa Cruz, for a bar and terrace. Contrary to what the applicant claims, arguing that the container is not a building structure incorporated into the ground with a permanent character, and therefore does not fall under the nature of an urban development operation, the Court understands, as per the attached decision, that ‘the construction of the container, which consists of the installation of a bar and terrace, as an urban development operation, requires the Applicant to initiate the licensing procedure (cf. Article 4, paragraph a), of the RJUE) since the title for the use of water resources does not confer the right to build without prior licensing.'” together with the Municipal Council (article 23, paragraph 2, subparagraph n), of Law no. 75/2013, of 12.09 and article 5 of the RJUE, and Judgment of the STA of 27.02.2002, Case no. 047405.
“Similarly, the court understood that the water resource utilization permit granted to the commercial company by the Regional Directorate for the Environment and Sea does not give it the right to build without prior licensing from the City Council, which, in this case, was not granted. Moreover, the same applies to other buildings in the DPM (Municipal Planning District), which require the necessary municipal licenses,” he explains.
Furthermore, it states that “in light of the aforementioned court decision, the removal of the container from the Promenade dos Reis Magos was ordered, which was not carried out voluntarily.”
And it adds: “The decision of the local authority to take administrative possession is thus legitimized by the Court, which is clear in stating that ‘without prejudice to criminal liability, in the event of non-compliance with any of the measures for the protection of urban planning legality provided for in the preceding articles, the mayor may order the administrative possession of the property’.”
It concludes that “the administrative possession of the container located on Praia dos Reis Magos by this municipality is perfectly legitimate, is in accordance with current law and a court decision.”
And he concluded: “Now, a new precautionary measure is delaying our decision, but we will not give up defending the interests of our citizens, to whom their recreational space must be returned, as well as the exercise equipment that existed on the site. We cannot have a system where wrongdoers are exempt from their responsibilities, to the detriment of the interests of an entire population and in violation of the urban planning rules in force.”