Parque Tejo – Lisbon will open its doors to the public for a few hours on Saturday, allowing the public to visit the area that will host World Youth Day (WYD) in August, according to the City Council.
The visit, permitted between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., will have a defined route through the compound, passing close to the cyclo-pedestrian bridge currently being completed, to the area where the main stage for the Catholic event is being built, according to information released by the municipality.
The route also includes a visit to the “model stand”, which presents the facilities that each area of the Tagus Park – Lisbon will be equipped with during WYD, such as drinking fountains and urban hygiene containers.
Entrance is via Praça Gago Coutinho.
Lisbon’s mayor, Carlos Moedas, quoted in the note, emphasizes the “unique opportunity for everyone to see first-hand the city’s investment in this place” which, after the WYD, will be opened to the public as the city’s new park.
“This is an area which, until very recently, was a rubbish dump and which will soon be able to be used by anyone who wants to. It’s a work by and for all Lisboners. And a work that will remain for the city’s future. The work came into being thanks to the WYD, but it will go far beyond this event,” he adds.
At 11:30 a.m., the mayor will visit the space.
The initiative comes less than two months before World Youth Day, which runs from August 1 to 6, with the main events taking place in Tejo-Trancão Park, on land belonging to the municipalities of Lisbon and Loures, on the banks of the Tagus River.
Pope Francis will be in Portugal from August 2 to 6.
Some 1.5 million people are expected to attend.
The government plans to spend 30 million euros (excluding VAT) on the WYD, while the municipalities of Lisbon and Loures will invest 35 and 10 million respectively, for a total of 75 million euros for the three entities.
For the Catholic Church, the WYD Foundation’s budget amounts to around 80 million euros, according to the Auxiliary Bishop of Lisbon, Américo Aguiar, in February.
In Oeiras, where several initiatives are planned with event volunteers, the most recent estimate of investment is around 1.5 million euros.
Carlos Moedas recently declared that the earthworks in the Parque Tejo had been completed and that the altar-palace in the riverside area would be ready for July 9.