The Lisbon Municipal Assembly today approved the council’s proposal for the transfer, for an initial period of 50 years, of the surface right of a municipal building in Praça da Alegria to the Hot Clube de Portugal.
Presented by the Councillor for Culture, Diogo Moura (CDS-PP), the proposal was approved by a majority of the Municipal Assembly, with Chega voting against and the rest of the deputies voting in favor.
At issue is “the constitution of a surface right in favor of Hot Clube de Portugal, over the municipal building located at Praça da Alegria, no. 47 to 49”.
In return, the Hot Club has to rehabilitate and restore the property.
This surface right, which will last for 50 years, has been valued at 545,000 euros, to be paid in annual installments, the first of which will amount to around 7,000 euros, which will be “updated annually in accordance with the coefficient for the annual updating of rent for non-residential leases”.
Before being voted on by the assembly, the proposal was discussed by the municipal executive, which unanimously approved it on February 21.
The Councillor for Culture stressed to the MPs that the Hot Clube de Portugal is “one of the leading and most respected clubs in Europe” and had to close its doors a year ago due to structural issues in the municipal building in Praça da Alegria.
“Finally, after some mature work between the Hot Clube management and Lisbon City Council, it was possible to reach a solution, a solution that is in itself definitive, that is, not only will this space once again have a place where performances can be given, but it will also allow the Hot Clube to develop a project that it has had for many years, called the House of Jazz, which is a space that will have the various documentary and bibliographic collections,” said Diogo Moura.
Although he supports an institution like Hot Clube having its own space in the city of Lisbon, Chega MP Bruno Mascarenhas justified his vote against with financial issues, including the time limit for setting up the surface right, which he considers “unreasonable”, pointing to the lack of information on the expected rent update for the future.
In a statement released on February 21, the mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas (PSD), said that the municipality had been committed “from the outset” to supporting the Hot Club and providing a space that would allow it to maintain its activity and programming.
“Fortunately, it was possible to find a solution in Praça da Alegria, as this institution wanted, a solution that will allow, in conjunction with Parque Mayer, the creation of a major cultural center in this area of Lisbon,” said Carlos Moedas.
The first phase of the work should take place this year and part of next year, with the club expected to reopen in 2025, the proposal reads.
With more than 75 years of history, the Hot Clube de Portugal is Europe’s oldest active jazz club and has operated in Praça da Alegria since its foundation, first in No. 39, a building that burned down in 2009, and then in No. 48.
