It is called "Fuse Valley", was presented in 2021, and should start being built this year in Leça do Balio, Matosinhos. It is a technological innovation center and the project is in charge of Castro Group. The executive director, Paulo Castro, foresees that the project can be inaugurated in 2030
The final phase of the "Fuse Valley" project is near and, according to the executive director of the Castro Group, Paulo Castro, the work should start "this year". "I would like, effectively, in 2030, to see the project fully built and operating," he told Lusa on Thursday, on the sidelines of the MIPIM real estate event in Cannes, France.
In fact, Paulo Castro estimates that between the second half of 2026 and January 2027, the first phase of the project will be concluded. The investment, which is around 200 million euros, is shared with Farfetch, a luxury fashion platform.
It involves the creation of a technological innovation center, with the construction of 24 buildings that will give way to offices, housing, a hotel, and various services. A "substantial" part of the office area will be occupied precisely by Farfetch, and "some negotiations" are underway to accommodate other companies and services.
Urban park with 10 hectares
"The main goal is to have the services and day-to-day needs available for those who work there," said Paulo Castro, noting that, once completed, the project will create 10,000 jobs.
The hotel, which will be "anchored in a 'business' hotel concept," will have 70 rooms and occupy an area of 12,000 square meters, where several common spaces are planned, such as "rooms for events, conferences, coworking spaces and spa.
Similarly to what happens with the area for offices, in this case there are also "talks with some operators", not yet defined the business model for the future hotel unit. This is because, clarifies Paulo Castro, it has not yet been decided "whether the hotel will start in the first phase or in a subsequent phase [of the project]". Still, the executive director believes that, within a year, this issue can be "closed".
In turn, the space destined for housing will integrate the concept of 'coliving' and will be "very focused on workers. It will have "about 150 units", and the creation of an urban park "with almost 10 hectares" is expected.
Municipal Master Plan suspended
On November 11, 2022, the Matosinhos City Hall suspended, for two years, through the publication of an announcement in the Diário da República, the Municipal Master Plan to allow the construction of the project.
"The proposed suspension of the plan is thus essential, otherwise the realization of a project of great importance to the municipality will become unfeasible," said the local authority, led by socialist Luísa Salgueiro.
The "Fuse Valley" project was one of the four finalists for the "Best New Development" category of the MIPIM awards, an event that brings together in Cannes more than six thousand investors and international financial institutions and in which the "Greater Porto" is present, a brand created by the municipalities of Porto, Gaia and Matosinhos to attract more investment to the region.
Bình luận