The municipal deputies discussed a report produced by the 3rd Urbanism, Rehabilitation and Urban Planning Commission regarding the petition ‘No to the cutting of the jacarandas on Av. 5 de Outubro’, which included recommendations directed at the city council, approved in sections.
The assembly also voted on a proposal from the Livre party against the cutting of the jacarandas on Av. 5 de Outubro. This proposal was passed with opposition votes from PSD, IL, MPT, PPM, Aliança, CDS-PP, and Chega and supporting votes from BE, Livre, PEV, PCP, PS, PAN, and independent deputy Daniela Serralha (from Citizens for Lisbon, elected by the PS/Livre coalition).
Representing the petition created on March 21 – Tree Day – which gathered over 54,600 signatures, Sara Moinhos stated, “These jacarandas are part of Lisbon’s ecological structure and are a main arboreal axis, classified in the PDM [Municipal Master Plan], spanning the entire length of Av. 5 de Outubro.” She noted there are photographic records showing this line of trees has existed since the late 19th century.
“The petition had a very fast mass adhesion, becoming the largest petition in the history of the city of Lisbon,” she highlighted, indicating that the safeguard of these jacarandas was threatened by the project to build an underground parking lot as part of the Entrecampos urban development operation.
The petitioner criticized the communication and public participation process managed by the city council, with tree removal work starting without public consultation, but halted by a precautionary measure. A subsequent information session with “more than 400 people” led to the decision to reevaluate the project, even though “three of the 47 trees in question were allegedly transplanted due to sewer work.”
Following the protests, the Lisbon City Council reversed its decision to remove trees on Av. 5 de Outubro, especially jacarandas, deciding to authorize “only three” transplants instead of 20 and to reassess the 25 planned removals.
Regarding the recommendations from the 3rd Commission, Sara Moinhos expressed that “they are very important and should be approved but did not fully address the petitioners’ concerns,” particularly about reducing the number of cars in the city and giving public space back to citizens, asserting that “the creation of parking in this area is not an inevitability.”
With abstentions from BE and deputy Daniela Serralha, the assembly recommended “that, as informed by the Lisbon City Council, the project be reevaluated to create conditions for the preservation and maintenance of the linear group of jacarandas on Av. 5 de Outubro, except in cases where they present irreversible pathologies or removal or transplant is absolutely essential for the fulfillment of the defined program.”
As part of this process, the city council informed that the underground parking construction project was under revision to meet the petitioners’ concerns.
Unanimous approval was given to recommend that the city council disclose phytosanitary reports on the state of the trees, create a resident parking pool in the underground parking lot to be built, eliminate surface parking spaces due to the creation of a green corridor in the central divider of Av. 5 de Outubro, and review communication procedures with the population.
With abstentions from PSD, PPM, CDS-PP, and Aliança, the assembly requested the city council “to monitor the safeguard process of any archaeological findings that may be discovered there, which the promoter must guarantee by law.”
The recommendation from Livre advocated for maintaining the existing jacarandas on Av. 5 de Outubro and reinforcing the tree planting in this axis. It also called for reviewing the road profile design and public space of this area and activating the ‘Veredas de Lisboa’ program.
