The works are not yet completed, but the Celeiro de São Francisco, an emblematic building of Faro, it already has a new face and, soon, it will also gain a new life. On the 7th of September, the City Council signed a contract for the transfer of this property to the association Faro 1540, an entity that will make the space more dynamic through projects related to memory and exhibitions.
This was one of the highlights of the commemorations of the Day of the Municipality of Faro.
The São Francisco Barn – built in the XNUMXth century in Horta de S. Francisco and also known as the Horta dos Doges Tower – is classified as a Property of Public Interest, but has been in a state of degradation for years.
The building is known for the two representations, carved into the walls, of Hercules and Adamastor.
In 2018, there was a downfall that was «a click» for archaeologist Paulo Botelho, president of Faro 1540 – Association for the Defense and Promotion of the Environmental and Cultural Heritage of Faro, decided that something had to be done.
“I made the decision to talk to the owner, we made a project, we presented it and it was a happy event unfolding”, he tells to Sul Informação.
In 2019, the Chamber legally took possession of the Celeiro, which previously belonged to the Ramalho Ortigão family, later advancing with rehabilitation works of 50 euros.
Part of the contract is completed and the municipality took advantage of the City Day for the inauguration, also with the unveiling of a plaque in honor of the Ramalho Ortigão family, for the transfer of the property.
Now it will be the association Faro 1540 to energize a building full of history.
«The base project that we will implement is “Tower of San Francisco – Territory and Memory”. The idea is that this is a project that brings together the people of Faro and that this is a meeting point, of experiences and memories. That is the main objective: to work on the memory of the people of Faro», explains Paulo Botelho.
The barn has two rooms: one will serve "essentially as a showroom", while the other will house four future projects from Faro 1540, all related to memory and identity.
This is, by the way, one of the missions of this association that lived, last Tuesday, one of its "most important moments" with the signing of this protocol with the City Council.
For now, the challenge is that «the entire legal process continues». There is still more work to be done at the Celeiro de São Francisco and Paulo Botelho's perspective is that, in six months' time, «everything is ready».
Before that, the idea "is to start doing some activities to whet your appetite for what's to come", says the director of Faro 1540.
To Rogério Bacalhau, president of the Chamber of Faro, this is a property that “is part of our history and our identity”.
“It was a heritage with a high state of degradation and which is now much better. This symbiosis makes perfect sense and we are all to be congratulated», he concluded.
Photos: Pedro Lemos | Sul Informação
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